I bought a snapping turtle and im wondering what kind of set up i should put him in?

Question

Hes a yearling and he looks healthy but he doesnt really seem happy wityh the 30 gallon tank i have him in with a speacial turtle uva bulb and a peice of bark he has to sit on

Answer 1

I just read that snappers like to half bury themselves in the muddy shallows...this site has some good information:

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

But rocks, plants, goldfish etc may help. He may eat the goldfish though. I don't know too much about snappers, I have a Sulcata Tortoise, big differences!

Answer 2

Anywhere but your underpants!!

Answer 3

snappers don't usually crawl out of the water to sun like others,

he should be kept in shallow water so he can lay on the bottom but still be able to reach his head out of the water to breathe

Answer 4

goldfish and some plants would do the trick:]

Answer 5

Bare tanks are fine for snappers. Most never bask. You can make up for the lack of basking by feeding liver, preferably dusted with bonemeal. The liver is loaded with vitamin D. If you want, live fish (not goldfish) can be added to the tank for snacks.

Answer 6

you should have researched the turtle before you bought it

Answer 7

The larger the tank the better,he will grow quite large,and they are very vicious.

Put some rocks in to give him a place of privacy.Please don't feed him gold fish.

Answer 8

Stay away from goldfish like a few people are suggesting. They are bad news for reptiles. Any other minnows are good, as well as crickets, worms, pellets, and the occasional pinky mouse. They like shallow water where they can breathe while sitting on the bottom and with alot of stuff to hide in. In the wild I see them in heavy brushpiles in shallow water. A good filter and a water heater doesn't hurt. I used to offer basking spots, but they never used them so I no longer do. Here's a good caresheet for alligator snappers, but it works for common snappers as well:

http://www.turtleman.com/turtlecare.html

Answer 9

put in some floating rocks and goldfish to eat :)

Answer 10

ok ok ok - let me get this - you bought a snapping turtle which can grow to more than 1.5 feet long and dont know how to look after it.

lets have a round of applause for this genious!