HELP! My boyfriend just came home with a pet turtle!
July 9, 2013 7:28 PM Subscribe
My boyfriend just came home with a pet turtle and it's in a really small hermit crab type plastic cage, no lamp, and a very small basking area. How soon do i need to get her a proper habitat?
I did some googling and believe its a red eared slider turtle. One of my boyfriends clients gave it to him so I don't know how old she is. She's very tiny, only an inch and a half or so long. The stores are closed now and I have to work before they open tomorrow. I'm supposed to go to a retirement party right after work which would mean the earliest I could get stuff is Thursday afternoon. Is that too late? Should I skip the retirement party and get the environment tomorrow? I don't want Tasha Turtle to suffer or die.
I did some googling and believe its a red eared slider turtle. One of my boyfriends clients gave it to him so I don't know how old she is. She's very tiny, only an inch and a half or so long. The stores are closed now and I have to work before they open tomorrow. I'm supposed to go to a retirement party right after work which would mean the earliest I could get stuff is Thursday afternoon. Is that too late? Should I skip the retirement party and get the environment tomorrow? I don't want Tasha Turtle to suffer or die.
Turtles bury themselves in mud for months at a time. On purpose. A day or two in an undersized or poorly illuminated enclosure is unlikely to do Tasha any serious harm, though I'd male sure her other needs are met (food, appropriate temperature, etc.)
If you have a large container to run some water into and let sit between now and then, that will get rid of chlorine (but not chloramine) and give Tasha some room temperature water to do her thing in as soon as you set things up on Thursday.
posted by Kid Charlemagne at 7:47 PM on July 9, 2013 [1 favorite]
If you have a large container to run some water into and let sit between now and then, that will get rid of chlorine (but not chloramine) and give Tasha some room temperature water to do her thing in as soon as you set things up on Thursday.
posted by Kid Charlemagne at 7:47 PM on July 9, 2013 [1 favorite]
My son's old daycare kept a similar turtle in a similar temporary habitat for YEARS (I felt bad for poor lil' turty and would occasionally take him home and let him cruise around in the open). So there's really NO rush whatsoever on your part. Get some reptile pellets at a Target or Wal-Mart now; get to the pet store to buy her a nice habitat when you can.
posted by julthumbscrew at 8:11 PM on July 9, 2013
posted by julthumbscrew at 8:11 PM on July 9, 2013
BTW please remember to always wash your hands after handling turtles or their containers. Salmonella is pretty unpleasant and they are carriers. This seems to have dropped out of common knowledge lately but sales of pet turtles were illegal in many places for a while during my childhood because of this issue.
posted by srboisvert at 8:27 PM on July 9, 2013
posted by srboisvert at 8:27 PM on July 9, 2013
Sliders are aquatic and can only eat in the water. Give her a bowl deep enough to swim in and some floating protein to eat plus a place to easily climb out of the water and she''ll be fine till tomorrow as long as she is warm enough (65-75).
It's illegal in the US to sell a turtle that small, reason being they tend to die. So don't get too attached yet, a hatchling turtle is pretty delicate and prone to fatal Infections she might already have contracted.
posted by fshgrl at 8:31 PM on July 9, 2013
It's illegal in the US to sell a turtle that small, reason being they tend to die. So don't get too attached yet, a hatchling turtle is pretty delicate and prone to fatal Infections she might already have contracted.
posted by fshgrl at 8:31 PM on July 9, 2013
Just, you know, make sure she can't scramble up the side of the bowl to reach horrible, horrible freedom.
If you do something like this, you may also need to be concerned about a hungry raccoon or the like eating the turtle while it's eating the bugs.
posted by JiBB at 8:36 PM on July 9, 2013 [1 favorite]
If you do something like this, you may also need to be concerned about a hungry raccoon or the like eating the turtle while it's eating the bugs.
posted by JiBB at 8:36 PM on July 9, 2013 [1 favorite]
Get warm bottled water tonight. Animals need it and there can be chlorine in water systems. It should have water.
Expanding on the idea above, set the insect trap without the turtle in it tonight. Then bring it in for dinner.
posted by Ironmouth at 8:50 PM on July 9, 2013
Expanding on the idea above, set the insect trap without the turtle in it tonight. Then bring it in for dinner.
posted by Ironmouth at 8:50 PM on July 9, 2013
Call House of Tropicals - I cannot say enough good things about how knowledgeable, friendly, and helpful they have been when I have run across various lizards and small animals and been clueless. (I will head up there and buy something with a high profit margin to subsidize their advice for you.)
posted by KAS at 5:16 AM on July 10, 2013
posted by KAS at 5:16 AM on July 10, 2013
Turtles are super cool! I'd highly recommend reading through the info from Little ResQ to find out the most humane way to care for a turtle. Specific care info for sliders can be found here. They are not low-maintenance pets by a long shot, but their needs are pretty straight-forward.
There's no harm in keeping them him/her in a small bowl for even a few days - but you will eventually need a fairly large enclosure to keep him/her healthy (and it's cheaper to buy that up-front than it is to replace a tank several times).
And, please please please, if things don't work out and you can't keep him/her, contact a good rescue group.
posted by VioletU at 6:14 AM on July 10, 2013
There's no harm in keeping them him/her in a small bowl for even a few days - but you will eventually need a fairly large enclosure to keep him/her healthy (and it's cheaper to buy that up-front than it is to replace a tank several times).
And, please please please, if things don't work out and you can't keep him/her, contact a good rescue group.
posted by VioletU at 6:14 AM on July 10, 2013
Plastic storage containers are common to keep sliders in because of their low cost. Make sure that the turtle can climb out of the water. It seems like it shouldn't be a problem but turtles can drown. They need to be able to get out of the water to rest. If you watch, they'll surface to take in air and then go back underwater.
I wouldn't leave the turtle outside without supervision. Raccoons find them tasty and if it's too sunny, they can cook to death from the water getting too hot in a shallow container.
You can feed your turtle a tiny bit of chicken for a day or two (pea size) but you'll need a better food soon. Chicken doesn't have calcium in it which turtles need for their shell. Small turtles are prone to something called soft shell. It means their shell is soft when you press back by their tail from lack of calcium. You can buy calcium powder to dust on meat but try to encourage your turtle to eat leafy greens which are a healthy source. Romaine is good but my turtle was not a fan. I had to cook it in tomato sauce to get her to eat it.
Turtles are also prone to shell infections so I feed mine in a separate feeding dish to keep the water cleaner. Shell infections are a headache so keep up with water changes. It's one of those things that are easier to prevent than treat.
Turtles are a lot of work. I love mine. She's very sociable and friendly but there have been times I really wasn't up to the work involved with keeping her. Cleaning a tank every two weeks is a lot of effort and they can live over 20+ years. Most don't live that long because people don't know how to care for them. You seem very motivated but if this all sounds too overwhelming, you might see if a pet store will take them.
Care sheet with good over view
http://www.anapsid.org/reslider.html
A message board for Red Sliders
www.redearslider.com/forum/index.php
posted by stray thoughts at 7:43 AM on July 10, 2013 [1 favorite]
I wouldn't leave the turtle outside without supervision. Raccoons find them tasty and if it's too sunny, they can cook to death from the water getting too hot in a shallow container.
You can feed your turtle a tiny bit of chicken for a day or two (pea size) but you'll need a better food soon. Chicken doesn't have calcium in it which turtles need for their shell. Small turtles are prone to something called soft shell. It means their shell is soft when you press back by their tail from lack of calcium. You can buy calcium powder to dust on meat but try to encourage your turtle to eat leafy greens which are a healthy source. Romaine is good but my turtle was not a fan. I had to cook it in tomato sauce to get her to eat it.
Turtles are also prone to shell infections so I feed mine in a separate feeding dish to keep the water cleaner. Shell infections are a headache so keep up with water changes. It's one of those things that are easier to prevent than treat.
Turtles are a lot of work. I love mine. She's very sociable and friendly but there have been times I really wasn't up to the work involved with keeping her. Cleaning a tank every two weeks is a lot of effort and they can live over 20+ years. Most don't live that long because people don't know how to care for them. You seem very motivated but if this all sounds too overwhelming, you might see if a pet store will take them.
Care sheet with good over view
http://www.anapsid.org/reslider.html
A message board for Red Sliders
www.redearslider.com/forum/index.php
posted by stray thoughts at 7:43 AM on July 10, 2013 [1 favorite]
This is another good resource for turtle care.
http://www.austinsturtlepage.com/
posted by nolnacs at 9:14 AM on July 10, 2013
http://www.austinsturtlepage.com/
posted by nolnacs at 9:14 AM on July 10, 2013
Also turtles don't need to eat every day - mine wants to but she's a pig. There should be enough water in the bowl for her to stand on her outstretched hind legs and poke her nose out of the water. She should be fine till tomorrow night.
Something I learned when setting up my first tank - don't get them little pebbly rocks like fish have. They may eat them and they can also get stuck in the filter.
Finally heed stray thoughts' words - turtles can live a LONG TIME. Mine is 11!
posted by lyssabee at 10:57 AM on July 10, 2013
Something I learned when setting up my first tank - don't get them little pebbly rocks like fish have. They may eat them and they can also get stuck in the filter.
Finally heed stray thoughts' words - turtles can live a LONG TIME. Mine is 11!
posted by lyssabee at 10:57 AM on July 10, 2013
This thread is closed to new comments.
Just, you know, make sure she can't scramble up the side of the bowl to reach horrible, horrible freedom.
posted by BitterOldPunk at 7:40 PM on July 9, 2013 [3 favorites]