Just playing with the idea of adding chelonia to our zoo.....anyone have any tips/suggestions for a first timer? I have been looking at different types, and I am kinda of overwelmed by all the choices. I really love the african spur thigh tortoise, but relize its too big for my first turtle, I love sea turtles, but thats also not relialistic....so box turtle, slider, cooter? I would like to have a turtle that was somewhat friendly, something my family can warm up to....We have tons of lizard experiance, but this is something way new. Thanks for your time......
Box turtles are great ... but I wouldn't recommend one to a beginner. They are very hard to keep properly. If you do decide you want one it is best to keep them outside. They are HARD to keep indoors because of their humidity requirements. Pretty much all tortoises are going to require an outdoor enclosure of some sort when they grow up-- irregardless of size. Your best choice here would be a Redfoot. They are extremely hardy tortoises and have a varied diet. They get about 12 inches in shell length. There are smaller tortoise choices -- such as Russians -- but they are harder to keep than most people give them credit for. They prefer weeds and grasses in their diet and this isn't easy for most people to provide. As far as water turtles go ... It all depends on your size requirements. Red Ear Sliders are the most commonly kept turtles ... and they are good because there is loads and loads of info out there on them for the beginner to sift through. They do, however, get big and need an outdoor pond (most likely) when they get bigger. Either that or a 120 gal. aquarium. If you want a small aquatic than a mud or musk turtle will work. They only need about a 30-50 gal. full grown! In general, turtles are not considered loving. If you work with them a lot you can get them to be at ease around you but they are not going to get especially attached to you. Tortoises are your best bet if you want something accepting of you and more along the lines of a tame lizard as far as temperment. Just remember that it really is best if they are outdoors when they are older.
elf - LOVE the advice! i don't think you mentioned map turtles, though (that's what i have). most stay pretty small (i've got my little male in a 75 gal inside during the winter and a 100 gal stock tank outside during the summer) and are pretty easy to care for. they are more sensitive to water conditions than most other aquatics. there's also spotted turtles. they don't need a lot of water - just a few inches. they are terrible swimmers actually and can drown in deep water. they stay pretty small, too, but they are fairly rare and are expensive. also, i don't think i'd put a mud or musk in a 30 gallon tank. one would need at least a 40 gallon breeder tank, in my opinion. but they are great little guys and good beginner turts. like you said, red-eared sliders are good but they get SO big. even the males (the smaller of the sexes in most aquatic turtles) need at *least* a 90 gallon tank. if you get an aquatic turtle, i would highly recommend that you go ahead a get their big adult tank and filter (rena filstar xp3's and fluval 404's are GREAT and you will need one at least the size of these filters). that way you don't have to keep buying progressively larger tanks and filters. i'd keep a hatchling in a rubbermaid, though - easy to clean and not as deep of water for little guys. one last thing - 99% of aquatic turtles need lots of uv light. most of the turtles mentioned (NOT ALL) need a tank that is completely full of water with a completely dry basking area under a heat lamp and a fluorescent tube-type uv bulb. for a basking spot i use a flat rock on a tall plastic-coated dish drainer thing that holds it just at water level. here's a pic from last winter: Mississippi Map Tank '04 you can see the basking thing on the right side. also, this was from when my turtle was only a couple inches long (shell length) and i had just put him in there, so the water level is pretty low. it's a lot higher now, though still about 6" fromt he top. and here's a pic of my outdoor stock tank i built a lid for - any turtle outside needs a locking lid. racoons, neighborhood cats, nosey neighbors, etc are deadly! Stock Tank
Thats some good info Elf, but as far as red sliders go, We are in Indiana and it is illegal for us to capture one as a pet. Not to mention buy one.
you guys can't buy res in indiana? wow i didn't know that. if i were you i'd get a map, mud, or musk.
We are planning to add a greenhouse to our home, to keep up with our demand for tropical plants in our vivariums. But because we are weird, herp crazy people, we see a greenhouse as a really really large enclosure for our lizards...so that has led us down a crazy planning path, adding a stream and a couple of small ponds for our greenhouse..and openning up our possiablitys for larger herps. I have always loved turtles/torts, so the idea of having one has got me pumped. We also want to include salamanders and tree frogs. So size isn't going to be a hugh problem, but I do have to find animals who can deal with the humitiy. I love the idea of a Red Ear, your right there is a ton of info on them, but as King said, we cant have them in IN.I have also read up on the Yellow Ear, which isnt wild around here, so they are ok to own, but I cant find any one selling them....So how bout the map, mud or musk turtles-high humity ok with any of them? I don't ever expect them to run up and rub on my legs like a cat(lol), but do they ever warm up to humans? I have no expections of affections for us, just know that we bring food.
Jeez .. that sounds great. Either the Redfoot tortoise or maybe even a box turtle would appreciate that humidity. Something tells me not to recommend a map turtle in THAT much humidity though ... I don't know. I would worry about it developing shell rot from the inability to never be able to completely dry off ... but I guess if you had a good basking light it wouldn't matter. But then there is the issue of URI's from so much humidity in the air ... Mud or musk turtles might be good because most specimens rarely bask anyway ... Whatever you get you will have to make sure that nothing in there is harmful to the turtles ... because they are sure to sample whatever you have in there ... if you are okay with that.
Well if you are going to get a swimmer the easiest for beginners are RES and Cooters. but he get huge. So If you don't have the space the next I'd recomend are Eastern or Southern Painted, they are just as fun and dont get as large. I know Hummingbird is going to get irritated, but maps arent usually good for a first turtle. I had 2 myself but they are picky eaters, very shy and require excelent water conditions.
naw i'm not irritated - you're right about the water conditions and the shyness. i don't agree with the picky eaters, though - my map will eat anything. lol. i think a map might be better than a res or cooter, though, simply because of the size. it's often easier to care for a small turtle that needs really clean water than a huge turt that doesn't need anything special. it depends on the person. p.s. like elf said, high humidity would be bad for a map because of shell rot and other shell problems.
Funny that you should bring up painted turtles, havoc, cause (this week) thats the one that stands out to me. Although I was thinking either southern or western...do you know what the difference is in those speices? Also could you tell me anything behaviorly about cooters? Yeah, I relize the weirdness of starting a greenhouse and then adding an animal that will EAT what we produce...but then again, it will be a great set up for the turtle...sucks about shell rot on the map, I was getting keen on mississippi maps......does anyone know if the enclosure is large enough, ie a greenhouse, could I keep more than one speices?
Well, if you want my opinion on tortoises, I would have to say an Indian Star. They're expensive, but they stay relatively small, are gorgeous, and eat like little pigs. But they're not big on humidity being mostly from dry grasslands of India. They too need a good deal of space and indoor and outdoor enclosures, but their size is much more managable than most torts. You can only keep more than one species if they are separated. It's a good rule of thumb to keep species separate due to cross contamination of disease and potential aggression. If you could set up your greenhouse with different enclosures, then I'd say sure you could keep multiple species or multiple genus.
The only differences in the two are the color and size. Western get as large as RES and have a dark orange and black belly. Southern have a light yellow belly (sometimes with a little black) and a yellowish line down the middle of their back. They only get to be about 9". Cooters, are wonderful shells. They are the easiest going friendliest turts around. But they get huge. I know I'll have to give up mine to someone with a pond. You can mix most species of North American swimmers. Excluding snappers and softshells.
