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taking care of terrapin's

inode

just got two terrapin's today. everything came with them tank filter etc. ive got a few questions.(obviously)

Do i leave the heat lamp on 24/7 or is there certain times it should be on?

How often and how much should i feed them? i got king british turtle & terrapin complete food.

i think that is it for now. im sure i will be posting soon with more questions lol.

thanks all

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Nala

just out of curiosity did they not tell you this in the pet shop? because those are some important things to know. where did you get them?

Myself I can't really help you as I don't know that much about terrapins (except some can grow as big as dinner plates) but if you go to Google I'm sure there will be loads of websites that can help you.

inode

the petshop really didnt tell me too much, i really should have asked when i was there. some websites say they are reptiles and get so much light others say leave it on. will go to pet shop today to ask.

Shelli

First of all, what you have is probably a Red Eared Slider, or a Yellow Bellied Slider, most pet shops will sell them as terrapins, but they're not.

Here is a care sheet on them:

http://www.austinsturtlepage.com/Care/caresheet-red_ear_slider.htm

This is a really good place for information and identification of turtles:

http://www.turtleforum.com/forum/upload/index.php?act=idx

Or you can ask me any other questions you might have, I've been keeping RES and YBS for 13 years now.

tallus

I think the onus is on the person buying them to do research first too, I mean you could have found out before you bought them OP. I did research before I bought my Hermans Torts because they need a fair bit of tlc and terrapins are even harder to look after in my opinion.
You could try the tortoise trust site, it's an excellent resource for all things chelonian. http://www.tortoisetrust.org/
I think it's probably the best resource for our shelled friends.
Best of luck with them anyways inode, they are facingating critters.
You should turn off the basking lamp in the evening, they dont bask at night in the wild. I'd feed them earthworms, they are supposed to be one of the best foods for terrapins, and they also eat greens, but check out the TT site for dietary tips.
I don't even know if they have to be Hibernated. I'm slowing mine down at the moment this is their third day without food! See the attached files.
Despite giving mine the correct diet and keeping them outside in natural sunlight as often as it was warm enough mine still have slightly lumpy shells.

inode

thats a nice website. im not sure what sort of terrapin they are, will post up pics later. they still have eaten. im getting worried about that. i bought a different brand of food today. its alot smaller than the other, its made by fish r fun called turtle and small reptile food.

more questions again. do i need a seperate water dish for them or will they just drink the already available water in the tank.

and by turning off the basking light at night do i still leave on the normal light?

thanks for all the help:D

Nala

If you don't even know what sort of terrapin they are how are you going to look after them properly?

Why do people buy animals (especially exotic ones) they know nothing about?

Shelli

What kind of tank have you got them in? You really need to know what kind of turtle you have.

inode

cause i got it as a present

Nala

was it a surprise or did you know you were getting it? If it was a surprise you'd think they'd have got you a book on terrapins as well.

Shelli

I don't think we should get into that debate here, what matters now is the well being of the turtles.

Did you have a look at the care sheet? Does your turtle look like the one in the picture?

inode

its an Aquatic glass tank. its very big. it has a uv light, fliter, and water heater. the guy at the petshop told me to get that one. i got a big rock for them to bask on. and got a sort of castle thing that they also bask on. im sorry i dont know much about this but as i said my girlfriend suprised me with them for my birthday.

inode

Shelli

Ok, sounds pretty much ok to start with. You need a heat lamp over the basking area, and it needs to be totally dry for them to be able to dry out completely. The UV and heat lamp should be left on for about 9 hours per day. As babies they wont eat much greens but when they get older they will need access to greens every day.

I wouldnt worry about them not eating for a few days, it takes a while for them to settle in.

Feel free to ask any other questions. It was a bit silly to get animals without reserching but at least your doing the best for them now.

Nala

It is still much better to research first and get the animal later but since they were a surprise...

Would relly like to know what pet shop you got them in?

inode

Nala wrote:

It is still much better to research first and get the animal later but since they were a surprise...

Would relly like to know what pet shop you got them in?

they were got in alphapets in strabane, co.tyrone

thanks for the help. so i will leave off all the lights overnight then

tallus

Best of luck with them anyways Inode.

inode

cheers. meant to say was over in local petshop earlier and he told me to leave the light constantly on. who is right? lol

tallus

Think of it this way... do they get constant light in the wild? Unless they come from the north pole and get constant daylight/summer, I'd recommend you turn the light off, it's common sense inode. Shelli has been keeping them for years and recommended 9 hours, I'd listen to what she says.

inode

thanks. sorry to keep asking questions but better safe than sorry. will post up pics of everything in a few hours.

inode

well here is a pick of the one who is hogging one of the basking areas lol

and also a pick of the whole environment

inode

here is the housing i have http://www.petplanet.co.uk/product.asp?dept_id=165&pf_id=6270

Shelli

Yep, looks like a YBS from what I can see. Some clearer close ups would be nice to confirm this, one of the head and one of underneath the carapace.

You should always hold them with thumb underneath and fingers on top, and not by the sides if can be avoided, esp when they are small, you can probably feel that the edges of the shell may still be a little soft. If you use your other hand underneath to support their little legs they'll feel a lot more seucre and will stay calmer.

Your set up looks fine for now, I hope you know what your letting yourself in for, depending on sex those little guys will get to about 8-9 inches normally and usually live 20-25 years, though I have known of some that have reached 40!!:D

Oh, one thing I noticed, you have gravel in the tank, this must come out. They can eat it and it will cause impaction, I unfortuantely learned this the hard way and lost 2 babies in my early days of keeping them. If you want to put stones in you can use the large aquarium stones, but make sure they are too big to be eaten. I find that a plain bottom works better, while it might not look as nice, it is easier to clean, and you'll find your filter works better and the water quality is better too.

EDIT: Just had a look at the link you posted, is the "UV" light you mention the one that came with the tank?

inode

yea.. i noticed it aint a uv light. is this bad? lol

Rancid

I totally agree on the no gravel!
I started out with it when I had to suddenly rehome a 7 year old YBS about 6 months ago and apart from the danger of her eating the pebbles, it made cleaning out the tank so much harder.
I now have her in a preformed pond indoors, no gravel just a few big stones and some plants for her to hide in or tear apart and eat which is what she mostly does.

She sleeps in amongst the plants all the time so I guess she feels safe in there.

Try feeding small worms, the live food should interest them. And don't forget to provide veg too, Romaine lettuce is good and weeds from the garden (pesticide-free, of course).

Good luck with your little ones!

tallus

You will need a light that emits UVB Inode. It's very important, you will also need to get them a vitamin supplement if you dont have one already. I recomment Nutrobal. You can get lights that both serve as a basking light and a UVB source, and they have to be changed once a year as the power of the UVB drops off dramatically after about 9 months or so, depending on the type you buy.
The setup looks nice btw.

Nevyn

Yes it is they need sun light or at least uv light esp in the dark winter days or else they will develope deficencys.

Nala

you seem willing to learn which is good anyway

inode

ive been looking online at uvb lighting, can't find a basking/uvb in one light.

http://www.petco.com/Shop/petco_Product_sku_401854_R_7176_enemerch_1.aspx?cm_re=Unknown-_-TopSellers0-_-401854

do i need to replace the whole thing of mine or can i get fluroscent bulbs to fit mine?

cheers

inode

best i could get in the petshop was a UVA light by exo terra. it says its for tutrles. i think it should be ok

tallus

UVB is the type of lighting for chelonians.
http://www.tortoisetrust.org/articles/lighting.html