Posted: Mon Mar 12, 2007 7:56 pm
Hi there!
Glad to help you out.
Thankfully, you sound like you have great, appropriate equipment. These guys really need to be kept clean, and it makes for more fun anyway to know they have lots of room. Do make sure your tank has some weeds ( even plastic ones) for them to hide in. And change things around now and then for their curiousity. We let ours run around the house for a couple of hours every second day - exercise and drying out time. When they were really small, like the size of a looney, we just had a cardboard box and a nice soft face cloth. They always "check the perimeter" and then find a nice dark place to nap.
In the US, red eared sliders cannot be sold under 4 inches in length. Unfortunately, that is not the case here. I was originally given two little tiny ones, and despite all our efforts, one did die. Fish flakes are OK to start, or regular turtle food ground up very fine. Oxygenating plants are good for the water, and they will nibble on them too. You can buy them at just about any pet store - I go the one in the Beach (Zoo on the beach). Or Chinatown East ( corner plant/fish store on Gerrard right beside Eastdale Collegiate). I hate to say this, but you should ask them when they are getting a new batch of babies - better to buy one that appears to be healthy and active, than the last of the bunch. Pet stores really don't do much for them by way of care, and they usually get 50 or 100 at a time.
We were lucky enuff to rescue two larger red ears, who had been dumped at the Beach, and taken to a pet store. They were in appaling conditions, and basically had been left for months without care. We immediately adopted them, and had to take them right away to a vet, as their shells were in poor condition, etc. They did get better, and my little one then had two very big friends! We have a large pond, and couldn't resist putting them in during the summer. However - stupid us - one large one left, as they like to have their own territory when they get bigger. We hope to see him one of these days around the neighborhood.
Our turtles have personalities, and, like all living things must be nurtured and cared for. I talk to mine, and I have more than a suspicion that they know what I'm saying... they can't wait for Spring, I think. Adn they do not like being in the tank after the pond.
Good luck, and you'll find the little ones grow on you. They are interactive, if you are sensitive, and will crawl up your foot, and let you know they are there. If you have your aquarium on a stand, you can pull up a chair and watch them watch you. Believe it or not, all our friends make a bee line to see how the turtles are when they visit.
Keep me posted if you like.
The Guys and their personal care assistant, Madeleine
Love from Munchkin, Zuma and the big guys who take care of them
