Hi! Introduce yourselves here. :: Totally New to Turtles!

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Post Posted: Wed Feb 19, 2014 6:56 pm   Totally New to Turtles!

Hi everyone - I'm a turtle newbee! Tons of good information on this site - thanks so much.

So ... my stepdaughter was fostering a RES for 2 years - she's moving to London in March and cannot take the turtle with her - so her Dad (my hubby) and I agreed to adopt the little RES and keep it in my stepson's room, as long as my stepson committed to taking care of him! Well ... as luck would have it ... I like the little turtle an awful lot ... :D

The turtle (renamed "Ryan", although I believe she's a girl) - was pretty much ignored for those initial 2 years, but she's healthy and happy! We received minimal care instructions, but did get a new 40gln tank, an 55gln insert filter, some floating food pellets, and a plastic rock that Ryan climbs. Ryan never had a basking area! So today I went out & bought Ryan a better basking platform, a 75W bulb, and a fake fern. He's already stretched out under the "sun"! We were told to keep the water at about 4" high - that the tank isn't made to be filled all the way. But based on the tank pictures on this site, 4" is pretty low! Ryan does a good job of swimming around though.

The tank base is a black substrate with florescent specks, but after reading here it seems river rocks might be best. It's only been 1.5 weeks and the water is SOOO murky - I suspect the substrate is a contributor. Do you think a canister filter would help? I really can't see us doing an entire tank cleaning once a week - based on the info here it seems more like 1-2x's/month if we do smart maintenance in between.

I'll do a full tank cleaning this weekend, then post pics of Ryan. I'd really appreciate feedback and advice. Thanks so much!
dueturself
 
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Post Posted: Wed Feb 19, 2014 11:44 pm   Re: Totally New to Turtles!

Definitely get a canister filter and fill the tank up wit a lot more water! Just not high enough she can climb out (or you can look through some of the pictures here and see what one gives you the best idea for your set up. A few tips I have learned along the way is to cut up some cuttle bone a few times a week (make sure you cut the hard backing off before giving it to Ryan) and veggies, veggies, veggies! Pellets only every-other-day (for her age) and only the amount that would fit inside her head. This is a GREAT site with, like you say TON's of great information on the proper way of raising these beloved creatures.

Do you have a thermometer? Get a good one if you can as well as a temperature gage for both the water and the basking dock.

Your temp on the dock should not be more than 90 and preferably around 82-85 degrees. I hope you have a UVA/UVB light as well as the 75 watt bulb for her basking.

I hope some of this helps and I am sure many more will chime in and will gladly help you with any questions you have along the way.

Welcome to the group dueturself :D
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Into_the_Mystic
 
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Post Posted: Thu Feb 20, 2014 11:46 am   Re: Totally New to Turtles!

Welcome to the forum!
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steve
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Post Posted: Fri Feb 21, 2014 10:10 pm   Re: Totally New to Turtles!

Thanks Mystic for the advice I appreciate it. And thanks Steve for the welcome. I've since learned the tank we inherited is a 50gln Zilla reptile tank. I'm finding out if I can fill it with more water, but I suspect I'll need to invest in a proper tank. We have plans to do a full water change and tank clean this weekend. Maybe I'll invest - once again - in proper substrate and a canister filter. I tell 'ya ... turtle ownership is somewhat addicting, and it's only been a few weeks! :)
dueturself
 
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Post Posted: Sat Feb 22, 2014 5:18 am   Re: Totally New to Turtles!

That tank was not designed to hold water. So don't try to fill it. River rock also traps debris. Try sand its a great substrate. Do weekly partial water changes. Get a canister filter and I suggest you clean it monthly. And Enjoy!
1 Male Mississippi Map/Mississippi
1 Female RES/Slidy.
1 DBT White Concentric Female/ Lucky
1 DBT Male/ Spots
(Housed in the same tank)

300 gallon indoor stock tank, FX6 & FX5 filters. Mega-Ray 100w UVB bulb.
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Kansasslider
 
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Post Posted: Mon Feb 24, 2014 8:32 pm   Re: Totally New to Turtles!

Hello! Welcome! We recently converted to sand when we upgraded our tank and we LOVE sand! It's awesome! The canister filter (Fluval 406) does a really good job of keeping the water clean and we only have a bit of waste on the bottom where the water current doesn't stir it up. I am doing our 2nd 90% water change this Wednesday. It is SO nice to only do water changes once a month. The people on this forum recommended Fluval filters and I am so happy to have listened. Again, welcome!
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rojo_amber
 
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Post Posted: Tue Feb 25, 2014 10:45 am   Re: Totally New to Turtles!

Thanks everyone! Last night we did a full water change & cleaning - what a job! Cleaning the gravel substrate was quite the task - straining, straining, straining. Honestly I would think sand would be more difficult? How do you keep that clean? Or is it simply the quality canister filter doing the job? And ... I hesitantly filled the tank 1/2 way and am keeping an eye on it. I'll need to soon invest in the proper tank but thankfully I'm home all day and can keep an eye on it. I took a picture of Ryan's clean tank & set-up this morning and am going to post that in the habitat section requesting feedback. Thanks again :)
dueturself
 
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Post Posted: Tue Feb 25, 2014 5:22 pm   Re: Totally New to Turtles!

To clean sand all you need is something like a python or aqueon gravel vac. Look up how to clean a sand aquarium on YouTube. Its real easy.
1 Male Mississippi Map/Mississippi
1 Female RES/Slidy.
1 DBT White Concentric Female/ Lucky
1 DBT Male/ Spots
(Housed in the same tank)

300 gallon indoor stock tank, FX6 & FX5 filters. Mega-Ray 100w UVB bulb.
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Kansasslider
 
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Post Posted: Tue Feb 25, 2014 6:36 pm   Re: Totally New to Turtles!

I don't have to clean mine too often. If I do, I use a fine strainer made for the kitchen.

As far as the rocks... do away with them. They trap a lot of waste and your better off with nothing on the bottom until you get some sand. (Pool sand only = : > )
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Into_the_Mystic
 
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