Help with a new turtle!?

Question

About 3 days ago, i went down to china town in LA to buy

some fireworks for 4th of july, and i found a little turtle for sale, and he was only 3 dollers, so i decided i needed a new pet, and bought him.

He came with some food in a little plastic baggy, and a small tank. the base of the tank is 6X3 inches, and it is 4 inches high, with about 1 inch of small rocks and 1 1/2 inches of water. I named the turtle Jiblet, he is a red eared slider, and he is about an inch long.

What i need to know is pretty much everything there is about turtle care! Like what i should feed it (right now im feeding it 3 small pieces of baby turtle food a day), when i should get a bigger tank, how big the tank should be, what i should put inside it, and anything else i missed!

Thanks in advance!

Answer 1

(Am I the dude that is Level 7 with the best answers? I have been keeping turtles and such for about 35 years, and do a lot of research to try to make sure I give good info.)

Red-ears are big, aggressive adults, and they take a little work to take care of the right way. In fact, we often say it will cost you $150-300 for a good habitat.

Pond turtles, like Red-ears, want three basic things:

1. Good water- figure a lot of water (at least 10 gallons per inch of shell length), that is kept warm (figure 75-80F, use a in-water heater), and kept very clean (use an external filter rated 2-3 times the size of the aquarium used).

2. Good sun- provide a basking site they can get on easily and safely- do not use rocks, a beach, etc., and the basking site should overhang the water. Warm the basking site up to about 90F with a simple light bulb or basking bulb that is on about 12-14 hours a day. UVB light is helpful but not critical.

3. Good diet- try 1/2 good brand name pellets (Reptomin or Mazuri are good), and 1/2 live or frozen/thawed 'fish foods' like worms, insects, arthropods, shrimp, snails, beef heart, etc. As it gets older, it will eat more vegetation- but that is a couple years away.

A great starter website you can try is http://www.redearslider.com

Answer 2

Start out with at least a 40 gallon tank (rule of thumb is 10 gallons per inch of shell length).  These guys get really big..up to 10 inches!  You'll need a strong water filter and a water heater.  A basking platform, a heat bulb (temp should be around 90-95F at the basking spot), a UVB light within 12 inches of the basking spot.  Heat and lights on for 12 hours a day.  Change the water frequently to prevent illness.  Feed a variety of pellets, fresh food, and vegies.  See this site for complete care--these guys are not easy!  

http://www.austinsturtlepage.com/Care/ca...

Answer 3

As for tank size I would recommend using at least a 30 gallon. This can wait till it gets bigger. There needs to be enough water in the tank for it to swim around. A substrate on the bottom is good to have, there needs to be a basking lamp with something (rock, log) for the turtle to sun bath on. As for food I would probably give it a little bit more a day maybe 4-5 pieces. You can buy turtle food at any pet store. You can also feed them some veggies on occasion. Mine was about the size of a quarter when I got him, I have had him for 5 years and he is a little bigger than my hand. To help clean the tank I have a filter that sits in the water. I also have an algae eater in the tank, but be careful as the turtle might eat it. It will not hurt the turtle to eat the fish, I actually by mine feeder fish for some variety and exercise as it chases the fish.

Hope this helps.

Answer 4

all i can say is ur so LUCKY ;P lucky ducky lol  well im writing as much as possible to help of corse and my life long dream to beet that dude wit the best answers who is level 7 so if u actaually think its a good answer vote me for best answer plz ;)

okeodky down to business red eared sliders  

http://exoticpets.about.com/cs/reptilest...  

it has everything u will need :p

but instead of wastin time and sorta starving ur turtle give it some vegetables like carats < cut lol and lettece untill u can go to a pet store and buy some variety

another website that is sorta cool that mtie give u some fun facts and help care for your turtle is

http://www.thefunplace.com/house/pets/sl...

it has a few paragraphs on them and other turtles ithink mostly red eared sliders though

i hope i sorat kinda helped if u need any more info feel free to email me at

[e-mail]    :):)

vote me best answer lol yay thnxs peoples

Answer 5

you will need a dry platform with  a heat lamp and uvb lamp each of which should be left on for about eight hours a day.

he should have at least enough water to completly submerge him self. when he gets bigger you should get him atleast a 40 gallon tank that is 18 inches  wide and a filter if you do not use a filter you should clean his cage every day.

P.S. DONT USE GRAVLE TO LINE THE BOTTEM OF THE CAGE WHEN HE GETS BIGGER!!!.

Answer 6

Get a 10gallon tank for now and upgrade it later.

Make sure you have a basking area it can climb up on for heat.  By a heat lamp with 60w bulb too.

Keep feeding turtle food and every so often feed it little pieces of cooked chicken. If you feed it lettuce then feed it only "romaine lettuce"  If you give it Iceberg it will not improve.

Make sure the tank is always cleaned every so often.

The water height should be twice its height of the shell and where it can get its head out of the water.

Place rocks here and there through out the tank so it can get some air.

Good luck!