Help with a Terrapin, if its a Terrapin.

paperwork

So i got hold of this lad here, but i dont know what he is or how to treat him. I only have him about an hour but i'm very cautious and dont want to hurt him or cause him discomfort. I think hes a painted terrapin but i'm not sure as his head doesnt have a red spot. hes really lively too.

hes quite big, about the size of a side-plate.

donal7

I'd get on to whoever sold it/gave it to you and find out how to look after it or else go to a local pet shop.

mymo

There's a forum above in the banner at the top, its for aquariums and reptile's etc, maybe post there?
Or maybe a mod will move it for you?

Cookie_Monster

not to sound condescending but why did you get a hold of him before knowing some basic info in him?

man.about.town

gorgous looking turtle, if your serious about keeping him, i can you any advice, ive a couple of turtles myself. i also have a few books etc... if you want you can have them for free. you'll need to invest in a big tank for him, atleast a 200 litre tank, if you look on gumtree you;d probably pick a nice tank up for cheap enough.

the basics;
big tank, heater, large filter, either a turtle dock or somewhere the turtle can get out of the water, a basking light. if you can do that he'll live a long time

Robin132

Looks like a yellow belly turtle to me. As has been said you'll need a big tank because they will get to be about the size of a dinner plate, heater, very good filter, heat and uv light, dock. If you take a trip to your local pet store (i'm sure you have at this stage) they will be able to set you up with the basic's.
i find the best food for them is reptomin and some veg's like lettice and the likes to supplement their diet. Any questions just shout, have two fo them.

Wibbs

Just to say from personal experience turtles can vary with their food tastes especially as they age. Some take veggie matter some don't(I'd say most of the sliders I've dealt with haven't, ditto for softshells), so don't be too concerned if he doesn't nibble at lettuce etc. Lettuce has little enough nutritional value anyway. Bang on advice so far. On the filter front I'd suggest an external canister filiter. Easier to change out and less stuff in the tank, which is always a good thing with our shelled mates. They're divils for screwing around with stuff in their tanks.

Makers like Fluval are very good for filters or if money is no biggie then the eheim filters are really good quality. Never had any problem with them(IMHO get the eheim ones online from the UK. When I got my last one it was literally half the price of the local ones). I got one with a heater built into the filter itself so even less stuff in the tank. I've lost count of the amount of internal glass heaters that turtles of mine have broken. Once I got a shock from one. Little buggers :eek: I think it was a coup attempt

A note on substrate, IE the gravel you put in the bottom of the tank. Some experts leave the bottom empty for hygiene purposes, but Ive found in a properly maintained tank the gravel acts as a biological filter. You may have to be careful with the size of the grains though as sliders especially will try to eat gravel(they use it to grind down food in their guts, like birds and even dinosaurs used to) and sometimes they can choke on it. Though it's usually only the babies that do that.

PS he(or she) looks in lovely condition with nice bright eyes and good shell growth. Looked after he'll give you many years of pleasure