What kind of fish I can put with my red earsider?

Question

I felt my turtle a bit lonely and wanted to buy some small fish to accompany her. Wonder if that can be done. Any suggestions Thanks

Answer 1

well they eat all kinds of fish which is their MAIN  food along with leafy greens garden worms, meal worms, snails, crickets, flies, crayfish small frogs, dragon flies and anything that moves BUT only as a treat.

The bigger the environment the bigger the healthier the turtle. Remember 10 gallons for every inch of turtle. I have used kiddy pools and plastic pond liners from most nurseries and worked great.

Did you know that they need to bask under a reptile light UVA/UVB for 8 to 10 hrs a day for the vitamin D that they need to grow. So that means getting a turtle dock also.

Leave the heater on 75 to 78 degrees always. These turtles in captivity do not hibernate their eating may slow down some but they will not hibernate.

Their water needs to be clean otherwise they get sick easily from dirty water cause they p**p allot.

Total Body length: 5-8" average, up to 12 inches max. Life span: 15-25+ years

Males have the longer front nails and are used in mating. And are considered mature at about 5 yrs old. You can’t start sexing till about  3” across.

You need a good filter system! Gravel larger than they can swallow.

You need to feed them feeder guppies, goldfish or minnows for protein and calcium daily drop 20 or so in the tanks and watch them disappear in a few days! When I got these two 36 yrs ago all we had in back then  were goldfish to feed , so after 36 yrs and still going strong. They can eat goldfish! I spend about 175.00 a month on fish ,goldfish and minnows. An Extra  75.00 on leafy greens and dried cubed tubiflex worms.

This way when they swim for their dinner they get exercise also!

They sleep at the bottom of rivers, streams. lakes or ponds or your tank to avoid predators like coyotes,  foxes, owls, hawks, possums, raccoons and even some wide mouth bass.

TOSS in a bird cuttle bone in the water for calcium. it will dissolve real slow and if they eat it that’s fine!!

They need leafy greens Romaine, Butter lettuce. (Iceberg and cabbage are bad for them, any other leafy greens will do) for vitamin A that they need at least 3 to 4 times a week.

You probably already know that they get sick easily, shell rot, respiratory sickness, lopsided swimming, coughing, blowing bubbles from their nose.

**Swollen cloudy eyes means lacking in Vitamin A. Which we all need for good eyes. Google ‘vegetables with Vitamin A.

Contact the “www.anapsid.org/societies, for a turtle vet /  rescue in your city and state.

I wish you luck.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/29035692@N0...

Answer 2

i don't think it would be safe to put any fish with sliders so you should get a separate tank

Answer 3

Tasty ones.

Answer 4

i think that its any fish bigger than the turtle

Answer 5

First of all red ear sliders are invasise to the us having one now is illegal because people let to many go and they cross breed to much

second any moving fish red ear sliders can and will eat any fish the ones you shoul get are the shrimp they will keed cage clean they are about a dollar and come with a bundl of shrimp and minoes or you should buy seprate minows gold fish make the tutles sick

Answer 6

Hey hun, no I don't believe you should put fish (to live happily) with turtles. Turtles are dirty animals and will kill fish in a few days. Plus it is their diet to eat fish (minnows, guppies, small goldfish). So they are going to be food.

Peek hun,

Even though your answers are thorough and helpful, its a lot to read for someone who asked if goldfish could accompany a turtle. You are copying and pasting your previous answers into every question pertaining to RES, and you aren't answering questions directly.. in this case.. not at all.