General Care Discussion :: Turtle aggression

[steve]

Wow, that's a great find. You do have to be very careful and make that it is an aquarium (not vivarium or terrarium) and that there are no cracks or leaks. Good luck!

[PatriciaTheora]

I was definitely worried about it, but i filled it to the rim with water and watched it for a few hours, no cracks. I am still keeping an eye on it though, just to be sure. Mal and Mikey are so much happier. Usually at night is when the bickering starts, but last night, not one peep from them, they slept the entire night! It is such a relief to finially have them in a tank that they both can fit in.
My mom, while watching me scrub like a mad woman to clean everything properly for over two hours said, "You are such a dedicated turtle mom." Made me feel amazing. ^_^

[steve]

Are you sure it's a 100 gallon tank? In inches L x W x H and divide by 231 to get the gallons.

[PatriciaTheora]

Are you sure it's a 100 gallon tank? In inches L x W x H and divide by 231 to get the gallons.

I did the math and yes, it is a 100 gallon tank.

[CactusJohn5]

Your welcome: the back of the neck mark, may not be a bite mark but actually a shell rub spot. Silly as it sounds, when they bask them sometimes put there head almost straight up, it can rub on the shell and make a mark. Underside of legs and neck, and tail are the soft spots that they will "attack" it they are attacking.

[PatriciaTheora]

Well, when they were in the original tank, i witnessed on more than one occasion Mikey going for the back of Mals head/neck. Thats why i assumed that scab, which is now a nicely healed scar, was from an attempt to bite his neck.

[PatriciaTheora]

Once again, Mikey is nipping at Mal. I assumed that getting a much bigger tank would help this aggression subside, but not the slightest. The first week, they were fine, as of now, I am genuinely thinking of using my extra tank and just separating them. Mikey is slightly bigger than Mal, only a few inches larger. Mal is 6 inches from top to bottom carapace, Mikey is more than 8 inches from top to bottom carapace. I dont want them harmng one another, it would break my heart if one of them got injured. Any tips? Suggestions?

[steve]

Sadly, a bigger tank does not stop aggression and in some cases, causes it. Since you have males, you know they won't grow much bigger than they are. I'd find a way to divide the tank to avoid double the work and equipment.

[PatriciaTheora]

The one thing that bothers me is the woman I had adopted them from. She said that she had raised them from hatchlings, and was very convincing when I questioned her about their behavior toward one another, saying that they had never been seperated, and that they were never hostile toward one another.Though I really shouldnt have believed anything she said, seeing as they were overfed and kept in only 5 inch deep disgusting water that smelled like it hadn't been changed in weeks, with no filter, water heater or basking platform.Their coloring and health improved drastically when I became their turtle momma. I think I am just going to use two tanks, that way I don't have to limit their swimming space, buying the necessities for a second aquarium is not a big deal to me, as long as my babies are both safe and stress free.

[apondfortimmy]

You could decorate both tanks with opposite style decorations! Like, one red, one blue, or one beach, one sea...

The possibilities are incredible! Also it's very good that you're so attentive.

[steve]

Personalities do change, it doesn't matter if they were from the same clutch. If you have multiple turtles, you always need to be prepared to separate them.

[PatriciaTheora]

You could decorate both tanks with opposite style decorations! Like, one red, one blue, or one beach, one sea...

I love the ideas! I don't like to follow the path or normality, so I am planning on drawing and designing the background paper. My favorite flowers are lilies and sunflowers, so I was thinking of mixing those with skulls mashed within the background too. I am going to do different styles for each aquarium. Then I am going to design a basking boxes to fit the top of each tank, since my turtles have a habit of escaping. So I will most likely end up painting the outside of the basking boxes to match each design. This is going to be a fun DIY project, and my turtles will be a lot happier and stress free when I finish it.

[steve]

You only wear him on sunny days, right?

[PatriciaTheora]

Lol No, I wear him as his punishment for escaping the aquarium. If I tried to put Mal up there, he wouldn't hesitate to dive off of my head. So I only get to wear Mikey as a turtle hat.

[Aqua&turquoise]

My turtles both have strong personalities, I don't know how I always end up with crazy animals lol. None of my friends or family understand that, the main response is "They are just turtles, turtles don't have personalities.". But other turtle owners such as yourself know exactly what I am talking about. I like to say that the day they became mine, I also became theirs. ^_^

I agree!!!