Hi! My name is Erin and I've been visiting this site ever since I got my two baby Res back in May. Their names are Murtle and Yurtle, real original I know, lol. I call them Murt and Yurt for short though. I know they can't be very old, they were roughly about half an inch when I got them, and they are now about an inch each.
I don't know if they're male or female yet since they are so young, but since they have very short claws, both front and back, I decided to make them female. I live on the eastern shore of Maryland, but actually bought the little girls in Hilton Head Island, South Carolina.
I'm a Flight Attendant and when me and my crew were walking around different little shops we saw this tank filled with RES. I didn't know much about turtles then, but even I knew the tank was WAY too small for that many turtles, close to 40 had to be in that tank. I'd guess it was about a 30 gallon tank too. They had no light, water filled almost to the top, and two little basking platforms made out of styrofoam.
I don't know what I was thinking but right then and there I decided that even though I could help them all I would at least get two out of there and try to give them a good home. The first one I picked(Murtle) was being bullied by the other RES. She kept trying to get onto a platform and would immediately be pushed off. The girl working at the giftshop gave me a net and told me to fish out the two I wanted. After I got her I put the net back in and Yurtle circled it a few times and then swam into it. I figured she wanted to come with me so I took her.
I went back to my hotel that night with my new pets(the two pilots I was working with laughing and joking the whole time about my unusual souvenir) and looked up what I would need and how to care for them. This was one of the first sites I ran across and it has helped me so much!
The next day I'm sure was very stressful for them because they had to travel with me all day, six flights, before we got home. They seemed like they did well. By the time I got home, all the pet stores were closed so they had to stay the night in their little tank I got with them.
When the stores opened I went and bought them a 20 gallon tank(going to upgrade to a 40 or possibly just go ahead and get a 100 gallon in the very near future), a filter, a REAL basking platform, a heater, and a basking light.
All in all, even though their trip home was stressful, I think they are much happier and healthier than they would have been if left in that giftshop.
I hope my intro wasn't too long, but just thought I'd introduce myself and share how I got my RES all at once.
