Urgent Care :: Turtle vs. Filter

[Ade]

So my baby turtle (I've only had him about a week and really don't know what I'm doing) got stuck to the filter tube thingy. I went to see him this morning and he fine and then I went back and he was upside down stuck to the tube. I pulled him off and he stayed on the other side of the tank, but I'm worried it'll happen again and I won't be standing right there when it does. Is there anything I can do?

[missibsu]

What kind of filter do you have?

They make filter guards that you can get at a lot of pet stores. It attaches around the intake tube to protect against such things.

It won't take too long before your turtle is strong enoug that it shouldn't be a problem.

[Ade]

I don't know what kind of filter...I bought a tank at Petco that came with everything I'm supposed to need for "Aquatic Turtles".

I kind of thought that he may be strong enough to swim off of it because it was only a few seconds after he was swimming around that I saw him stuck there. Maybe it happened before and he got off of it fine.

One more question: I have what I think is a UVB bulb...it's kind of purple and came with the tank..it seems to give off a good amount of heat; do need another bulb for him?

[missibsu]

You need to measure the temp on the basking spot. If it isn't around 90F then you will need an extra heat source. A regular household bulb will do. My guess is that you will need one. You also need to check and see if your light has UVB for sure. Just because it is purplish doesn't mean it is UVB. And full spectrum does not mean that it is UVB either. Please double check!

[Ade]

Thank you so much. I'm so scared that I'll get home from work and my little Walter will be stuck to the thing dead.

[marisa]

He's getting stuck to the intake tube? The tube isn't big enough so that he can get his head stuck up in it, is it? (Hatchlings have drowned that way.) Most filters I've seen have some sort of grid/covering on the intake so that sort of thing doesn't happen. You could rubberband a barrier (plastic mesh, for example) around the intake until you find something more secure. Are you sure there isn't a piece that came with the filter for this purpose? I know you can buy heater guards, but I've never heard of buying filter guards...(but you can easily make one).

The purple bulb doesn't sound like a UVB light if it gives off heat. Regular UVB lights are flourescent and don't give off enough heat for basking. You need both a UVB light and a heat source (a regular lightbulb works nicely).

[Ade]

The filter did come with a little extension thingy that is closed at the bottom (where he got stuck) and has little holes in the sides, but it doesn't fit. He didn't get stuck inside of it...he was just being held at the bottom of it by his belly. His head could potentially get sucked up in there I guess, but I haven't seen it happen and I would think he'd be able to swim away.



Which light do I turn on and off every 12 hours? Both? Do I leave the UVB one on all the time?

[Kallistos]

No, at night you keep all the lights off, none of that night-time bulb stuff is needed. I keep my basking light and UVB light on all day.

[steve]

Is the filter tube installed correctly? The store where you bought it from should exchange any missing or broken pieces if this is a new filter.