Is my turtle happy?

Question

he is a red eared slider, about 3 inches long in a 50 gallon tank. He has lots of warm( 75-77F), filtered water to swim in. He has a basking place above the water, 90-95F. He has a basking log, a uva light, and also a uvb light, of course. But since we have moved, i hardly see him bask, which is soo weird because he used to bask all the time. The water is clean, and filtered with a good filter. He is very active, and appears to be healthy. But he is not eating like he used to, which is also weird because i feed him reptomin, crickets, mealworms, shrimp, krill, kale, mustard greens and cuttlebones. He doesnt seem interested in live food, since i have feeder fish in the tank, but is very active!!! i know he is growing, because he is shedding his scutes in layers, and shedding his skin. His setup is completely accurate, and i am sure he is not sick. Maybe it is because of stress, we moved to new apts a week ago. But is he happy? How can i make things better then it allready is?

Answer 1

they are real social animals and love company especialy while basking. If his scutes are shedding he is grtting big and that is great!

In the wild they grow up on minows and wild guppies and leafy greens..I have a 150 gal pond stocked with minows and goldfish and cuttle bones for calcium and mine have NEVER been sick. They get lonely like we would.

You know males have long front nails go out  and get him his own ....gf!

As you know I have 2 that are 36 yrs old..and I think thats why they have lasted so long cause they have always had each other..

Answer 2

it actually sounds like he's happier now with him being so active.  some turtles go through stages where they wont eat as much and then rapidly pick up their eating pace.  I wouldnt be too concerned unless he altogether stops eating for over a week.  thats the time to worry and call a vet.  overall it sounds like hes just fine.

Answer 3

Okay.  You just moved, so that is stress, but to move - you were busy packing, moving, and then unpacking.  So, he didn't get the attention he's used to during the moving process, and that probably also has contributed to his stress.

Try spending a bit more time with him, and talking to him.  Did you change the way the room you moved him to is set up?  Is the furniture different than at the old place?  Is there more light from a window?  Less light?  He could be 'spooked' because the environment around his tank has changed.  Turtles take to/stay in the water when they are scared or insecure.

Just be patient and I'm sure he'll adjust to the new situation.

Just FYI (though it sounds like you're feeding him well), I'll post a gut loading recipe for crickets, and also a water turtle diet you can check out at your leisure.

GUT LOADING CRICKETS for REPTILES:

The number one problem:

Dried up and malnourished pet store crickets and mealworms. These food items are essentially useless. A dehydrated and unfed cricket contains almost no nutrients at all; refrigerated mealworms are even worse. A lot of the variety in nutrients found in wild insects is actually in the stomach content - usually plant material. We need to duplicate this to provide the best for our reptiles; without the risk of illness/disease/parasites which can result from feeding our pets wild insects.

Please note that wax worms, while fattening, are not nutritious.  Young geckos can eat small silk and phoenix worms, as well.

Basic Dry/Staple Cricket Food:

Equal amounts of dry Iguana food, dry dog food, chick starter mash, oatmeal (you can add dry baby food wheat/rye/barley, etc. as well; even shredded wheat - no sugar).

Grind these items together.  Place in a small lid/bowl for the crickets to eat.  Store the unused portion in the refrigerator or freezer, until needed.

Supplement daily with one of the following: sweet potato, bananas, zucchini, oranges, carrots, strawberries, assorted squashes (acorn, yellow, etc.), grapefruit, green beans, apples, kale, spinach, cactus pads, and just about any other nutritious item you can think of (do not use white/yellow potatoes - these are starchy and only good if used as a moisture source during shipping, and NEVER use Avocado - it's poisonous to most animals).

Provide the dry food and kale at all times (kale is readily available during the winter months, too), rotating the other food items through in succession. The key is variety, and to provide an assortment of varying nutrients. What you are trying to do is offer your reptiles crickets with guts 'loaded' with fresh foodstuffs.

The crickets should be gut loaded for 1-2 days prior to offering them to your reptiles.

Also, provide fresh clean water in a lid/bowl, adding a sponge or folded paper towel to prevent drowning.

  

Don't offer more crickets than the reptile(s) will consume within: 1.) a few hours if it’s a lizard, salamander, frog/toad, or 2.) a few minutes, if it’s a water turtle, so you know the crickets will still be full of the good stuff when eaten.

The crickets should be dusted (shaken in a plastic bag gently to coat them) with vitamins (keep these refrigerated) and calcium D3 powder 2-4 times a week, depending on the age of the reptile.

Be sure to remove any uneaten crickets so that they do not soil your pet's environment/water or bother your pet, once it is full.  Crickets CAN turn the table - and feast upon your pet! Or aggravate them, causing stress and even cessation of eating.

Also be sure the crickets are the correct size for the reptile.  The cricket should be the same size long as the reptile’s head is wide (about the space between the lizards’ eyes).

There are many opinions on how to meet the dietary requirements of your RES (and other water turtles).  You can consult your vet for their recommendation, too, and google turtle breeders/sites to see what they feed.  This is what I have found to provide a happy/healthy reptile:

In the wild, red ear sliders (and other water turtles) eat both animal and plant sources of food. However, juveniles are mainly meat eaters, and eat less plant matter than they will as they grow.



In captivity, the diet for juveniles should consist of a commercial aquatic turtle pellet product (like Reptomin floating food sticks); aquatic plants such as Anacharis (research which are safe for consumption); gut loaded crickets; and very small feeders guppies/goldfish/minnows. Hatchlings should be fed small amounts spaced several times over the day (they are growing quickly) and juveniles should be feed on a daily basis. The diet can be supplemented with frozen tubiflex worms and earthworms. Plant matter, in the form of leafy greens (*like curly kale, collard greens, turnip greens, duckweed, water lettuce, Anacharis, chickweed, plantain weed, fig leaves, grape leaves) or finely chopped mixed vegetables, can be offered several times weekly but may not be readily accepted until they grow a bit older, or curiosity sets in.

Get a cuttle bone from the bird dept. at a local pet shop (you can easily cut this to a desired size or use whole for larger turtles/tanks) and drop it in the water for added calcium.  Turtles are curious, and eventually they'll bite at it.  This is fine too, but if they don’t, they will still get added calcium as they drink the water.

For adults the diet is relatively the same (amounts increased as they grow, and daily feedings decrease), but more of the diet may consist of commercial turtle pellets and plant items, such as Anacharis (*see plant/vegetable material above) and vegetables.  

All my turtles, regardless of age, enjoy their gut loaded crickets.  Offering fresh live fish supplements their diet, and provides a good source of exercise as they swim, stalking and catching them.  Adults should be fed assorted greens several times a week.  Adult turtles may not eat daily, but most will if offered the opportunity.

Alternate/rotate the greens to provide a variety of nutrients: (*see above); kale; romaine/red leaf lettuce; mustard greens; dandelion greens/flowers; watercress; parsley; Swiss chard; shredded carrots; shredded squash (yellow; pumpkin; acorn; etc.); mixed vegetables (fresh is better, but thawed frozen can be used) and miscellaneous fruits. NO iceberg lettuce; brussel sprouts, or cabbage!  Never Avocado (this is toxic/poisonous to most animals)!

You can reduce your task of keeping their environment clean by removing your turtle(s) to a small tank/plastic water filled container of the same water temp. (water turtles primarily feed in the water) for feeding.  Turtles shred their food with their beak and front claws, and tend to be quite messy eaters.

Make sure you're using powdered calcium with D3 to dust his insects, as well as reptile vitamins.

Good luck with the lil guy, and I hope his habits soon return to normal.

I hope this has been helpful.

Answer 4

yes some Animals do get quite lonesome, so I suggest getting a female one for him to play with if you know what I mean.