Habitat - Indoor :: Since I don't have a big tank...

[AllTheCandies]

I transformed the bathroom sink!
The tiny turtles have been doing so well! They are eating regularly and they are energetic. Since their health is improving so well, I decided they need some extra swimming exercise. I scrubbed the sink clean with vinegar, then rinsed the whole thing out a few times to be sure all harmful chemicals and soaps were gone. I plugged up the sink with a dish towel.

They swam and dived and explored the new area. They looked like they were having a good time.



Jager investigate the mysterious water pouring from the sky.


“Hai”


Stoli, chasing and devouring noms.


Mountain climbing adventure! aka exploring my legs.

[Ranger The Red Ear Slider]

Looks good but that won't be a good setup for more then a couple of weeks. Do they have a proper basking area? Also they might be able to climb out since the water level is near the rim of the sink so you need to cover that up with something. 20 gallon tanks at most pet stores are only 30 bucks so that would be better then the sink or you can find a good deal on much bigger tanks on craigslist. Also when you do take them out of the sink to put in a tank make sure to clean the sink with Clorox or whatever you use to clean your bathrooms cause turtles do carry salmonella and you can get it since they where in your sink.

[AllTheCandies]

haha they don't live in there. I have them in a small quarantine-esque setup with a basking area. when I got them they were very very sick, so I don't have a legit set up for them yet. But they were doing so well that I decided to give them some extra exercise time. They were only in the sink for like two hours. But now they're back to their regular home on my desk.


That's their current home. Again, this is just because they are sick. I'm changing the water daily and giving them medicine. This is pretty much a sick-tank.

[rsour24]

is all u have a heat lamp? they need uvb too. they have such beautiful shells and id hate for them to get ruined do to improper care.

and in the one pic ur legs look a little cold

[AllTheCandies]

it's uva and uvb I used to keep fish and frogs and I've been handling and dealing with snakes for most of my life. I don't know too much about turtles, but I know basic reptile and amphibian care.
The bulb doesn't give off heat, but the lamp is like all metal, so it does.
And don't they have gorgeous shells?? They have such pretty patterns. I'm so glad I took them away from Chinatown.

[Marcus.85]

If you're looking for a temporary setup you could get a ikea samla 35 gal plastic tank, it'd be actually a lot bigger than the sink and it's only 15buckz.

[AllTheCandies]

ikea makes tanks???

[kittyclover]

Ikea doesn't make actually fish tanks but plastic bins you can make into a poor man tank for now.

[AllTheCandies]

ah ok. Yeah, I was planning on using bins. I can't afford much else. And I can put the cover over it and pretend it's storage for like five minutes if my land lady visits and randomly decides turtles are not allowed.

[rsour24]

you could look into stock tanks, you may need to save a little to get a larger one (100 gallons +) but its much cheaper than an aquarium but a great way to give your turtles enough space, or even for a temp summer outdoor home

[AllTheCandies]

Oooo I forgot about those. I'm just gonna figure it out as I go along. I live in a second floor studio apartment in Boston. So I have to really look at all my options. But I know an outdoor home isn't possible. They'd like get attacked by hoodrats.

[Marcus.85]

Yeah they're those clothes storage plastic containers things. They're not that bad, I bought one some time ago when my tank exploded, which now is used as a dwarf hamster's setup.

[AllTheCandies]

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GrqCpitd_v4[/youtube]
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F3vNyufq5sU[/youtube]

Second sink swimming adventure! I let them swim around for like half an hour or so while I was cleaning out their bin-tank. There's some weird sounds and music and conversation between my roommate and I going on in the background.

Also, why do my turtles swim into barriers all the time? Does it mean they are unhappy and want to get out? Or can they just like not figure out what a barrier is?

[Skids]

i would keep an eye on craiglist. Cheap turtle supplies. Tanks for a dollar a gallon. canister filters for 50 bucks and so on.

[AllTheCandies]

oh true! I always forget craigslist exists.