New addition! Turtles!

[equinelover23]

Two of them! Tiny ones!


Ok, here's the story.

My mom's friend's daughter went to the mall and bought herself a couple of turtles from one of those little booths in the middle of the mall. Her mom didn't know until she came to pick her daughter up.

She wasn't to happy.

She ended up asking my mom if she wanted them, and my mom asked me, and wala... I now have two new pets!

Problem is.. I know nothing about them!

You see, they look like baby turtles, but the lady at the mall said they don't get any bigger. But she gave us hatchling turtle food... so wouldn't that mean that they were babies and they were going to grow?

I don't mind if they grow, I will happily buy them a bigger tank, but I would like to know if my new pets are gonna get bigger!

Hopefully you guys can help me out. I named them Franklin and Hubert. I took some pics to show you guys...



For Size comparison...

[crsvstang]

First, they are so cute!!

Second they are Red Eared Slider Turtles. They need to be living in a 37-50 gallon tank. They will get bigger! We have a female red eared slider named Fred.

Here is a good site to read up more about them www.resoasis.com

I'll get some pictures of Fred for you so you can see how big she is.

[crsvstang]

Ok, here you go here is Fred. We got her from my parents, she was in a tank way to small for her. She seems be happier now in her bigger tank.

I got her out so I could get some pretty good pictures.



And no she is not missing a back leg it was just position she was in.

[equinelover23]

Aw! Fred is so cool!

Thank you so much.. you've been a big help. That site is really great!


One more thing... How fast do they grow?

[crsvstang]

Well it took Fred about 2 years get to the size she is. She really didn't grow that fast. A woman at pet store told Rob she could get little bigger. But I think she is about done growing now.

Oh, and your welcome.

[Suki Wingy]

They are adorable and so is Fred!

[Fur&Feathers]

Congratulations on the new additions! They are TOO adorable! It's really unfortunate the lady at the mall is giving out false information. Hopefully a turtle that's "not supposed to get any bigger" won't fall into the wrong hands. I mean, someone who bought the turtle thinking it'd stay that small, then disposing of it when it grows. I've seen that happen way too many times with all sorts of animals.

Anyway, congrats on Franklin and Hubert!!!

Stang, Fred is so big! I don't believe I've ever seen a Red Eared Slider as big as her. She's very pretty.

[chocolatepuppy]

Your turtles are cute! I know nothing about taking care of them, that's why I passed them up at our mall. I'm sure you can gather lots of info quickly and take great care of them!

[equinelover23]

Thanks again everyone.

Fur&Feathers: I know what you mean. Just a couple of weeks ago we found a parakeet flying around! It was very tame and let us catch it right away. We ended up giving it to one of my mom's friend's at work.

Oh, and your bird is sooo stunning.

Chocolatepuppy - I know! I love having you guys here... I get get all the information I need fast.

[NoahsMommy]

Awww....they're sooooo cute!!

My parent's have a Red Eared Slider and he's gotten large over the years. He currenly lives in a 15 gallon tank, but it getting a larger one soon.

Enjoy your new little ones.

[luckies4me]

ACK! Way too adorable! I want a RES sooooooo bad, but they can't be sold in OR anymore.

[equinelover23]

Look at this picture I found.

http://www.turtlefarms.com/specialty...aded_FINAL.gif

Oh yeah, and I think franklin needs a new name! It just doesn't suit him....

He's very afraid of everything and barely has any markings on his back. Oh yeah, and he eats ALL the food.

[ramanth]

I really despise those mall vendors. This is not the first time I've heard of this. They are lying to customers telling them that the turtles are "dwarf turtles" and won't get any bigger. But they do.

grrr!

Your two little ones are very cute.

[king2005]

I also hate those venders, not only do they give out wrong information, but they sell very ill animals.

Red Eared Sliders will grow to about a foot in shell length. Feeding the turtle just the stuff from the store will not do. It needs fresh veggies & life fish.

At their size feeder guppies will be large enough. The reason u feed them life fish, is because it forces the turtle to get off its butt & move around.

Not only do they need a large tank, but they need a basking spot & the proper lighting.

I would check out this forum Turtle Times
There r MANY RES mommies & daddies on there. I go there & help new parents of Common Snapping Turtles.

Its such a friendly place & there is just soo much information on there. If ur turtles ever becom ill, chance r, they'll know whats wrong & tell u how to make him better at the cheapest price. Most times its just a bad diet or poor water.

For starters, get a large rock for them to bask on. get a turtle lamp from the store. then get a GOOD filter.

If u cheap out on the filter ur little guys r sure to get that deadly eye illness. A BIO filter is just the best way to go. Get the best & largest one u can afford. so as they grow it'll still be perfect for them.

My filter for my snapper is for a 1000g pond. my pond is only a 160g, so I know the filter will do a great job.


If u want to cheap out on a tank. get a preformed pond from Home Depot. In the off season the 160g was only 80.00cdn!!! so if ur in the usa, it'll be a lower price then what I posted.

If u get the preformed pond I would just fill the bottom section with water & leave the shelves dry. Get those really flat rocks & have them on the ledges so the turtle can get on them to bask.

Heres what my pond looked like a few years ago (I didn't have a good filter then only a homemade one which was ok)



See all those little rocks at the bottom of the pond, ya those r BAD!!!! I didn't know that ay first. but having a bare bottom is the best way to go.



Thats the ledge. Axle loves to sleep on that ledge. I now have a plant basket attached to that ledge & he'll cuddle up to it & sleep there all night long.

Snapper care is different then RES care. My snapper doesn't like to bask & most do not. so his pond is all water.

please PM me if u need more help. I'm full of info for turtles, as Axle is my life