Posted: Sun Jan 08, 2012 5:58 pm Re: I'm completely new to RES, any advice?
I have no idea if this applies to your situation, since I've never raised hatchlings, but I know our adult turtle used to get pretty stressed when he had to travel or be out of his tank for an extended time, like for cleanings. When he was stressed from traveling or cleaning, he tended not to be very interested in food for the rest of the day. These days it doesn't seem to bother him quite as much, but it was a big deal for him as a little guy. I don't know how long it takes you to clean the tank every day, but I wonder if the daily process is causing your babies too much stress to eat.
You might consider going ahead and buying a filter very soon (along with the water heater Steve mentioned). How big is your tank? If it's 10-20 gal, a Tetra Whisper filter is pretty cheap and effective, at least while the turtles are small. Once you have that, you'll only have to do partial water changes from time to time and change the filter media bag as needed. You won't have to clean the whole tank for months. Then you won't have to disturb your turtles and they can spend lots of time getting used to their home and feeling comfortable there. (Turn the filter off when you feed them, as the pellets tend to float right into the filter stream and get bombarded by it, making them hard to catch). Once your turtles have grown some, you'll want a bigger, more expensive filter, but the smaller, cheaper ones should do you for now, especially if money is an issue.
If you haven't already done this, you might also choose a regular time of day for feeding and stick to it as a routine. That way they learn to expect food at a certain part of the day, and their bodies can start getting excited about the food they know is coming.
The only other thing I can think of is how secure your turtles feel. Our turtle is much less likely to be active and hungry if he feels vulnerable. If you have a glass tank, you might try blocking certain parts of the sides with large books or potted plants - especially the basking area, where turtles feel most vulnerable. This way, they feel safer, knowing they have a place to hide. Our turtle doesn't like the feeling of people towering over him, so if your tank is on the floor, you might have better results if you crouch closer to their level as you feed them, or walk away altogether.
That's all I've got! I hope your little guys get things figured out!
