Found abandoned terrapin today need advice?

IrishHomer

I took in today an adult terrapin that was picked out of a local river.
I would appreciate advice how to keep it alive it seems very healthy despite benign out in the freezing cold river.

I don't know if swimming water is essential, at the moment i have a study light shining on him to warm him and i tried feeding him some tinned dog meat but he's not interested.

Silverfish

I don't know a lot about terrapins, but I know they need water to swim in, and rocks to climb onto out of the water and bask on.

And I found this

Offer a wide variety of whole natural foods such as whole lance fish, bloodworm, earthworms and insects (mealworms, grasshoppers, and beetles). Feeding pellet food and any other specially manufactured food is also recommended.

"Whole" means with the shell and skin, do not remove any parts. You can chop them up before feeding to make them smaller, but make sure all the bits are eaten. This is important in order to balance their diet, especially with regards to calcium levels.

These "food animals" should be fed on cat biscuits or any household scraps before feeding, as a full gut will increase their nutritional value when fed to your terrapin.

Vegetables such as frozen mixed vegetables, carrots, and green leafs are excellent if the terrapin will take them. You should try to get your terrapin on these as he/shee matures.

Twice a week food items should be dusted with a reptile calcium/vitamin powder such as Nutrobal before feeding to balance the diet.

Meat (such as pork and beef) is a very poor food as it is low in calcium, vitamins and fibre, and will lead to disease so should not be given.

So perhaps dog food is not the best for them.

Shanao

He needs to be able to swim in deep enough water that he is completely under it; be very careful that he doesn't dry out. You will also need a basking heat lamp to make sure he's getting the proper amount of heat. Your local pet shop should have turtle pellets for him; feed the pellets and not the dried shrimp because the pellets have the right amount of calcium and everything to ensure he's healthy.

Wibbs

He can only feed in water too. Dog food is too high in various minerals(esp salt).

So you need some water. The cheapest option and best bang for buck might be one of those rigid pool liners. Garden centers are your friend there.


You dont need anything too big. But if its fully grown, its gonna be close to a foot long and an aquarium in glass big enough to house it would be pricey. Half fill it and throw in a stone or two so he can get out and bask.

Now the reason he or she may be healthy is because he's naturalised in and adapted to the river. There are "wild" ones, abandoned pets out there. The ones in Phoenix park pond spring to mind. They can survive the cold, even near freezing conditions. Depending on species and body weight. There are european terrapins in Germany and it gets way colder there than here. Better to keep it though, in case it was recently abandoned. Though what kind of scumbag would abandon one at this time of year. The mind boggles.

carleigh

I had 2 terrapins a few years ago now, Oscar and Raptor. We used to give them special terrapin food from the vets but also, he told us it was good to give them some shredded boiled chicken and cat food now and again for some variety. Best of luck!

Dutchology

IrishHomer wrote: »

I took in today an adult terrapin that was picked out of a local river.
I would appreciate advice how to keep it alive it seems very healthy despite benign out in the freezing cold river.

I don't know if swimming water is essential, at the moment i have a study light shining on him to warm him and i tried feeding him some tinned dog meat but he's not interested.

Dog food isn't any good to your new addition. You'll need to get some 'turtle food' as well as some bloodworm, other than that they'll eat locusts, crickets, mealworms, waxworms and a few veggies & leaves such as dandelions.

They eat in the water and must be kept in water at all times with a dry land area to bask on. They require large filtered enclosures, UV and a basking light.

Your best bet if you do not have a pond to put this turtle in, is to try to rehome it. If you drop me a PM I may have someone who can take him for you. There is a garden centre down the road from me with a pond that has taken in 1 already that is thriving in their pond and are willing to take in a few more rehomers as they are such a huge problem in Ireland.

In any case, I'm glad that's one less terrapin swimming in Irish waters. Off you go and catch some more

breadandjam

Wibbs wrote: »

The ones in Phoenix park pond spring to mind. They can survive the cold, even near freezing conditions. Depending on species and body weight. There are european terrapins in Germany and it gets way colder there than here. Better to keep it though, in case it was recently abandoned. Though what kind of scumbag would abandon one at this time of year. The mind boggles.

Wow I haven't heard of them- which pond in the phoenix park? Are they still there?

Ailishcrehan

Hi there, if you contact the National Exotics Animal Sanctuary, they might be able to help you as they specialise in exotics and already have a number of terrapins. You can visit www.neas.ie for information on who to contact, failing that I will PM you my number and you can give me a shout. Ailish

Ailishcrehan

meant to say I volunteer with an animal rescue group and have plenty of experience with these creatures and have owned them! I would imagine the water he is in now is warmer than the water he is used to, just be careful not to increase the temperature too much as it might shock his system. They are hardy creatures and can tolerate some amazingly unnatural environments, but they deserve to be treated with respect and dignity and given the quality of care and life they deserve.

Wibbs

breadandjam wrote: »

Wow I haven't heard of them- which pond in the phoenix park? Are they still there?

TBH I cant recall which pond it is, but yea they're still there. Well they were as of last year. Here's a set of three (V nice)photos a chap took last year of them;
http://www.flickr.com/photos/johnnyghia1302/4633247396/in/photostream/

I haven't seen red eared sliders for sale for a while so they must be old enough. He's looks a bit unusual for a red ear, maybe one of the sub speices or a painted turtle? He looks well healthy anyway.

Funny their website doesnt mention them.. http://www.phoenixpark.ie/about/naturebiodiversity/wetland/

Dutchology

The NEAS were initially building a pond last year or the year before that could apparently house up to 150 turtles and before completion there were already 60 odd turtles on the list, waiting for a new home. I'd say that pond was filled before it was finished. I don't know if they went ahead with the second pond but I sure hope so as this is such a huge problem in Ireland.

Ailishcrehan

@ Dutchology - The NEAS have now a waiting list of 100 turtles to come in so they are up to their eyeballs! The have offered to take the turtle found in the lake, but he is with me at the moment. He is not well, he has most likely contracted pneumonia after his spell in the lake, he won't eat at all, so we are taking him to NEAS on Monday as they know how to treat his illness and then I will take him back..have a tank and he is more than welcome to be part of our ever expanding animal family!

Wibbs

Pneumonia? Why do you say that? Is he blowing bubbles from his nostrils? That can be a sign of respiratory distress. Another symptom is when in water the turtle floats at an angle as usually one lung is affected more than the other and as they use their lungs to affect bouyancy. Aquatic turtles staying on land more than usual another sign of it.

Have you raised the temp above 20 degrees in his enclosure? Is his water temp above 23 degrees c? Does he have a basking lamp any old spotlight will do for the moment TBH, though if you have a full spectrum reptile light even better. If his surrounding temps aren't up, he will be listless and won't eat. They can go without feeding for a pretty long time, so long as they have fat reserves. They're not mammals, so a few days of not eating is no real indicator of health. They can be fussy eaters too and can also get stressed if moved from tank to tank and could refuse food for a few days.

neelyohara

Wibbs wrote: »

So you need some water. The cheapest option and best bang for buck might be one of those rigid pool liners. Garden centers are your friend there.

Do you mean for outdoors?

Is it ok to house them outside given the right set up, secure area, good water, safe area to bask? (I'm not talking about taking one out of a tank and dropping it into your garden mid-winter!)

Just curious really. Not planning on getting any!

Wibbs

Not really, I meant indoors, or in a greenhouse kinda thing. Much cheaper than the equivalent volume glass tank. If they're big enough and the right species they can survive really cold weather. Then again I have a book on aquatic turtles written by a German chap who has kept them for decades and has many of the more hardy ones in outside enclosures and Germany can get a lot colder in winter than here.

Dutchology

neelyohara wrote: »

Do you mean for outdoors?

Is it ok to house them outside given the right set up, secure area, good water, safe area to bask? (I'm not talking about taking one out of a tank and dropping it into your garden mid-winter!)

Just curious really. Not planning on getting any!

I know of several people who keep them outside all year long, once acclimatised properly over time and put out in the spring/summer they do very well. The main thing in winter is to keep the water moving. They tend to dive under and stay fairly dormant in winter and then become active in the spring.

neelyohara

Interesting! I do remember my neighbours kids 'discovering' their terrapins in a shed after they lost them a year before when they moved. (Yeah. I know what you're thinking!)

I've no idea how they survived - it was a concrete shed with a concrete roof, dry and dusty inside. They were tiny so they had that going for them... but they are obviously hardy little buggers.

I must get up to the park to have a look, but in the meantime I'll leave you with this! :cool: