terrapin's question

NeVeR

Hi all,

I'm thinking of getting some terrapin's maybe 3 or 4.

I've been reading up on them here http://www.reptilehouse.net/care/terrapin(26).pdf and i can see they are not easy to look after but I think i'll be able to,

The question i have at the moment (and i'm sure there will be more) is are there any places online i can buy stuff for them, Like enclosures/dry land area.

Will a large empty fish tank suit them ?

Do they need a certain size home?

Glowing

Can I urge you to read the Homes Needed Sticky and you can see the rediculous number of people trying to rehome Terrapins. They're an incredibly difficult, expensive pet to look after and with 3 or 4, you'll pretty much need an entire room dedicated to them.

Don't do it.

NeVeR

oh thanks.. I didnt think they where that much trouble i'll read the tread,
thanks for the heads up.

Glowing

I know - I made the same mistake myself. When they look so small, they look as easy as fish to look after - but believe me, they will grow to be the size of a dinner plate, and they'll keep growing, and you'll have to buy bigger and bigger tanks, and heat lamps, and filters. Cleaning out the tank will be awkward, and they'll need a mixed diet to avoid health problems.

Now multiply that by 4, and you see what I'm getting at? They can also live for years and years, it's a huge commitment!

NeVeR

before i looked into it.. i thaught they stayed small. I'd love to get some. I've only a small room as it is tho. Even if i got 2 they would grow to big for my room.

LovelyTom

There are many other types of turtles that grow a lot smaller. You should have a look at some other species.

NeVeR

What small turtles are available in Ireland. I wouldn't want anything that would grow over 4 or 5 inches.

Jimkel

NeVeR wrote: »

Hi all,

I'm thinking of getting some terrapin's maybe 3 or 4.

I've been reading up on them here http://www.reptilehouse.net/care/terrapin(26).pdf and i can see they are not easy to look after but I think i'll be able to,

The question i have at the moment (and i'm sure there will be more) is are there any places online i can buy stuff for them, Like enclosures/dry land area.

Will a large empty fish tank suit them ?

Do they need a certain size home?

Once again Ill show the magical pics of discouragement!


http://www.granisturtles.com/sites/L.../P8010002c.jpg

http://www.abc.net.au/reslib/200610/r113368_356236.jpg

NeVeR

NeVeR wrote: »

What small turtles are available in Ireland. I wouldn't want anything that would grow over 4 or 5 inches.

Jimkel wrote: »

Once again Ill show the magical pics of discouragement!


http://www.granisturtles.com/sites/L.../P8010002c.jpg

http://www.abc.net.au/reslib/200610/r113368_356236.jpg

thats why i posted my post above your one !

LovelyTom

NeVeR wrote: »

What small turtles are available in Ireland. I wouldn't want anything that would grow over 4 or 5 inches.

Reptile Haven gets in Razorback Musk turtles which grow to a max of 5 inches and in my opinion look far more attactive than the red ears... you should have a look they're very interesting... it wouldn't hurt to do a bit of research on all species to see which one suits you best, most species aren't available to buy in your local but the likes of wackers and reptile haven may be able to order them in for you.
Best of luck
Tom

Our man in Havana

Map turtles are fairly small too.

Once the red ears & the yellow bellies are grown on a bit they are perfectly happy OUTSIDE in a POND! My rescues currently live in a old bath & have done for a few years now - this year the pond will be finished & they will have a mega large home.

Jimkel

Bond-007 wrote: »

Map turtles are fairly small too.

Dude my female missishippi map turtle is 18 inches in shell diameter...wouldnt call that small! (And yes she is deffo a map turtle and yes she is deffo 18 inches long)

Demonique

As someone who has a turtle, I can safely say get a tortoise instead!

More expensive, but a lot easier to keep and a lot more docile too!

Check out Reptile Haven on Fishamble Street after you've researched how to look after them

thrush

Hi,
Last friday, my girlfriend saw what we later discovered to be a yellow bellied slider walking down the street from the direction of our local park. His shell was about 5 inches long, quite battered looking and with bits peeling off.

someone had obviously abandoned him.we picked it up and rang the ispca. they told us they wouldn't be able to collect him till monday. that night, we decided we wanted to keep him and rushed out on saturday to buy a reptile enclosure (the ones that have the glass opening doors -approx 3ft by 1 1/2ft with about 8" water depth), a turtle dock, a heat lamp, UV strip light, a filter, underwater heater, food, water purifiers...etc etc.

unfortunately he never seemed to recover from his ordeal, we never saw him eating food, and found him dead yesterday.

so now i have to decide what to do with all the equipment which we bought (pretty expensive!). we either get another turtle, or get rid of the tank somehow.

I'm quite interested in getting a turtle/terrapin. I had one for about 5 years when i was younger but eventually had to re-home him when he got too big (a red ear slider).

I'm not really interested in caring for a pet that rapidly grows into a dinner plate size- although we took on the abandoned turtle knowing he could grow a lot bigger.

are there smaller breeds of turtle/terrapin that could be homed successfully in such a tank (or a little bigger) than the one i've described?

Rancid

Thrush, such a sad story.
Good work on being prepared to rescue the little turtle, even though he didn't make it.

As far as I know the Musk turtles are the smallest, they're supposed to stay around 5 or 6 inches fully grown.
Maybe someone else knows of smaller ones?

thrush

Rancid wrote: »

Thrush, such a sad story.
Good work on being prepared to rescue the little turtle, even though he didn't make it.

As far as I know the Musk turtles are the smallest, they're supposed to stay around 5 or 6 inches fully grown.
Maybe someone else knows of smaller ones?

yeah. pretty sad. if i do get another turtle, it will only be if i can care for it 100%.

i wonder does reptile haven have musk turtles? will investigate their care conditions...thanks.

Shelli

thrush wrote: »

yeah. pretty sad. if i do get another turtle, it will only be if i can care for it 100%.

i wonder does reptile haven have musk turtles? will investigate their care conditions...thanks.

Hi there,

Reptile Haven have razorback musks in at the moment, very cute little things, if you want care sheets and/or advice on keeping them this site is the best I find:
http://www.turtleforum.com

Also, if you don't decide to get another I might be interested in your tank and equipment so gimme a PM!

Good luck whatever you decide, and well done on trying to rescue the other little guy!

thrush

Shelli wrote: »

Hi there,

Reptile Haven have razorback musks in at the moment, very cute little things, if you want care sheets and/or advice on keeping them this site is the best I find:
http://www.turtleforum.com

Also, if you don't decide to get another I might be interested in your tank and equipment so gimme a PM!

Good luck whatever you decide, and well done on trying to rescue the other little guy!

thanks. just got back from reptile haven. think we're gonna get a razorback! i've read that they might fight if kept in pairs. has anyone had any experience of this? can they be sexed as babies?


also, this seems like a great resource: http://www.turtleforum.com/forum/upload/index.php?showforum=111

LovelyTom

I just bought one from there yesterday! they can't be sexed till they're older but they're great little guys! give a nasty bite though;)