red eared slider info?????????

[txgirl266]

i will be getting one of them from a friend. but i need as much info as possible first. housing, and whatnot [img]modules/Forum/images/smiles/icon_confused.gif[/img]
[addsig]

Weeell they are a really aquatic type of ss of turtle. I keep mine in a 2/3rd aquatic and 1/3rd land type caging. I use the basic mulch for their land area as well. They love to burrow under the stuff and that's about the only time that they actually come out of the water. they spend most of their time in the water though. As for feeding.. they will eat just about all from what I see. I feed mine goldfish [ but have seen recently that this could not be a good thing for chelonians. Still checking into that even.] They also eat vegetation and the turtle pellets np usually. As for temps on their water.. I keep em at room temp and use a filter/pump to help keep their water clean as well. Give them the UYB lighting in their caging also. AND also I give em a heat bulb in case they want to get under it and warm up even, other than ambient temps.
Hmmm.. What else ya need to know ?
OH and they are definately one to possibly be harboring the salmonela bacteria as well. aquatics ya know. MAKE SURE THAT HANDS ARE WASHED ALL THE TIME WHEN DEALING WITH THESE GUYS!!
Hope that helps ya some....
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[txgirl266]

thanks lori, do u by chance have pics of the terrarium? i need to figure out what design would be best for them. how big can they get, also need that for caging size questions.
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[eddie]

Hey Tx,
Check out Redsliders Swamp, and the care sheet on the left under turtles/torts.

And like Lori said, she wasn't sure about goldfish, but I will say they will raise the ammonia level in the water which isn't good for the turtles.
I usually get smaller feeders, I can't recall what they are, but they are small white scaled and bug eyed.
That and dried shrimp turt food, pellets and some fruits, like bananas.
Just float a couple of thin slices on the water and they will start to nibble on them.

A cuttle bone is also good for them to help with calcium and beak trimming.

They also need plenty of UV lighting, natural sun is the best for this.
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[Kohm]

Apparently, feeding too much dead fish to turtles leads to a build up in thiamin in their bodies, and then thiaminase, which is like an overdose of vitamins. If you cook the fish, it denatures the thiamin, that's why we don't get it, but I dunno about feeding boiled goldfish to your turtles. I'm not sure if you will get the same problem with live fish, so I could be like what eddie said about rising ammonia levels. I'm trying to find out if water snakes fed on live fish are vulnerable to thiaminase, but I've only read about it in turtles.

RES can do on some veg and fruit too like eddie said, any you give to torts, cabbage, carrots, etc. They also take insects, the usual crickets. Shrimp have just as much calcium as fish in their shells, but I think they don't have as much thiamin. You can get live shrimp, or the freeze-dried ones in cans. Liver is also good, it has vitamin A which is essential to chelonians. Most eye problems come form vitamin A deficiency. You can try any kind of liver, beef, chicken, pork, they are largely the same.

All the best, hope this helps.
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