Decorative red-eared turtle: care features

2024 Author: Priscilla Miln | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-16 00:21

The ornamental red-eared turtle is one of the most popular types of freshwater reptiles kept in the home. In this article, you will learn what equipment is needed to keep turtles, how to care for them, how to feed them and much more.

Are red-eared turtles ornamental?

To answer this question, let's look at what the word "decorative" generally means when applied to pets. A decorative animal does not perform any useful actions, it starts up only for the purpose of observation and communication. A decorative animal does not guard the house, does not catch mice.

For example, take a rabbit. There is a wild rabbit, there is a domestic rabbit, which is used for food, and there is a decorative rabbit - for keeping in an apartment as a pet. The word "decorative" is often associated with dwarfism (as many small breed dogs are called decorative), but this attribute is not required. Thus, to the question ofcan we call the red-eared turtle, intended for keeping in an apartment, decorative, we will answer in the affirmative.

Are red-eared turtles dwarf?

On the net you can find questions: “How to distinguish a red-eared turtle from a decorative one?”, “Are red-eared turtles dwarf?” etc. The fact is that some unscrupulous sellers, they can even be called scammers, sell ordinary red-eared turtles, passing off as dwarf ones and calling them decorative ones. They give recommendations for care - feed once every 4 days with dried hamarus or feed the young 1-2 times a week.

And indeed, turtles bought from such sellers and living in the recommended conditions do not grow. How long can a red-eared ornamental turtle not eat? Up to several weeks, the animal may starve, but the owner will assume that this is normal, because the seller advised to feed less often! Turtles live in constant hunger, they do not have enough energy to grow, only to maintain a semblance of life. Animals die after a few years from exhaustion.

If you bought a "pygmy ornamental" red-eared tortoise that the seller claims will never grow up to be just as small and cute, then know that you have been deceived. There are no such turtles. Now let's talk about what a red-eared turtle is, how to care for it and how to feed it properly.

Description

Decorative red-earedthe turtle came to us from the northeastern part of Mexico and the southern states of the United States. Thanks to unpretentiousness, the habitat of red-eared turtles has expanded very significantly. It can be found today in Europe, Africa, Asia and Australia.

The turtle gets its name from two red (sometimes orange or yellow) spots behind its eyes. Turtles grow relatively small - up to 30 cm in diameter, but giants can also be found - up to 60 cm. In the first 2 years of life, the turtle grows intensively - up to 10 cm per year! With age, growth slows down, and the animal's shell adds 1-2 cm per year.

The lower part of the shell is dark with yellow stripes and edging, while the color of the upper part changes with age and can be various shades of green - from dark green to olive and even yellow-brown.

Aquaterrarium

Turtles are often recommended as a simple animal for beginners, and they are inexpensive - 100-150 rubles. But is the red-eared ornamental turtle so unpretentious? Care at home will require both labor and material costs, because the purchase of the necessary equipment will have to pay 10-20 thousand rubles.

Decorative red-eared turtle can be kept both singly and in a group. It should be noted that for the maintenance of one individual, an aquaterrarium with a volume of at least 110 liters is needed. If you decide to purchase several turtles, then they should be about the same age and size. In a group consisting of only males, conflicts will constantly arise, thereforepay attention to the gender of the animals in advance.

The water in the aquarium should be warm, 26-28 °C. The water level must be higher than the width of the animal's shell, otherwise the turtle will not be able to roll over. You need to change the water 1-2 times a week, if you purchase a filter, then you can do it less often - 1-2 times a month. An aquarium heater is needed to maintain the temperature.

Land in the aquaterrarium must be at least 25% of the total area. The shore of the island should rise at an angle from the bottom. The land should be located so that even a grown turtle could not get out into the wild - at least 25 cm from the top edge of the terrarium.

Aquaterrarium lighting

Decorative red-eared turtle in nature spends a lot of time on the shore, under the sun. They are replaced in captivity by a UV lamp. It is installed at a height of about half a meter above the aquarium. At first, turn on the lamp 1-2 times a week for a few minutes, gradually bringing the time up to half an hour daily. UV rays disinfect the tortoise shell, without a special lamp the animal starts to get sick.

The terrarium should also be equipped with an ordinary incandescent lamp for lighting and heating. The air temperature on the island should not rise above 30 °C.

Food

How to feed a decorative red-eared turtle? In order for the turtle to actively grow and be he althy, it needs to eat fully. At a young age, turtles prefer animal food, with age they begin to eat more and more.plant food.

Young animals are fed daily, after two years - 2-3 times a week. You can feed both special food bought at a pet store, and natural food. It could be:

• Poultry, beef, horse meat (pork and lamb are not suitable due to their fat content).
• Offal (liver, heart, lungs, stomach, etc.).
• Low-fat fish (soaked in hot water for a few minutes) or small live fish, shrimp, squid.
• Snail meat.
• Insects. Not poisonous! Grasshoppers, caterpillars, beetles, mealworm, bloodworm, coretra, large daphnia.
• Live or dried hamarus.
• Aquatic plants - duckweed, hornwort, ceratopteris, ludwigia.
• Vegetables and herbs - cucumber, lettuce, clover, dandelion.

Homemade food

You can make your own combination food. Its composition may vary in different recommendations, but usually it is something like this:

1. Food gelatin (30g per half glass of water).
2. Fish fillet - 150g
3. Squid fillet - 100g
4. Milk - 150 ml.
5. Raw chicken egg - 2 pcs
6. Carrot - 70g
7. Apple - 50g
8. Cabbage - 50g
9. Calcium Glycerophosphate - 10 Tablets
10. "Tetravit" - 20 drops.

Mixture can be stored in the refrigerator for a week. Before use, the cut piece must be warmed to room temperature. This amount is enough for 7-10 days for an adult turtle. Asa source of calcium, bone meal or crushed eggshells should be given daily.

If you choose a ready-made commercial food for turtles, then carefully read its composition. Feed consisting of dried hamarus or bloodworm alone will not work.

Feed turtles in the water. Remaining food 20-30 minutes after the meal should be removed from the terrarium.

Main mistakes of red-eared sliders

So, a decorative red-eared turtle has appeared in your house. Caring for this animal is not as easy as it seems. Very often, newly minted owners are poorly oriented in the features of keeping an animal. Consider their main mistakes.

1. "For a little turtle, a small aquarium." This reasoning is fundamentally wrong. The animal should swim freely at any age, and turtles grow very quickly.
2. "Aquatic turtle can live in an ordinary aquarium without land" is another mistake. A red-eared turtle without an island of sushi will simply drown!
3. "UV lamp is optional." Again, no, without UV rays, the turtle will suffer from vitamin D deficiency and start to get sick.
4. You can not feed the turtle the same thing, for example, only meat or only hamarus. The diet should be varied.
5. You can't run water in the aquaterrarium. It must be clean, no turbidity or film! In dirty water, young animals may refuse to eat.
6. Do not remove peeling plates from the shell, do not need to be cleanedbrush it hard.
7. Do not buy at the same time two males or turtles that differ significantly in size, they will fight, conflict. And constant stress will lead to illness.
8. Don't hibernate your turtle yourself. At home, if the recommended temperature is maintained, the turtle will not hibernate.
9. All accessories for cleaning the aquarium must be separate, it is unacceptable to use sponges with which you clean the room or kitchen.
10. Don't keep a turtle in the same tank as fish unless they are reptile food.
11. Don't let the turtle walk on the floor, it can quickly catch a cold.