Urgent Care :: Mating with a fake turtle?

[jgreerberube]

Sandy is trying to mate with his fake turtle!!!!!

This fake turtle has always been with him since he was the size of a loonie. He used to always do the 'mating dance' with it but now. . . I think he's actually mating with her. . .

Here is a video of him: http://youtu.be/NjlxcxWhU2M


How big is your turtle? 5.5 inches
How long have you had it? Since it was a baby

What is the water temperature? 72 Celcius
Did you use a thermometer? Yes
Are you using a water heater? No
How much water is in there? 6 inches
Are you using a water conditioner? No
Are you using any filtration? No (Just cleaned it yesterday, though. The water is clear as day)

What is the basking temperature? I don't know. . .
Is there a basking light? Sometimes (I rotate one basking light between my turtles)
Is there a basking platform that is easy to climb on? Yes
What kind is it or what is it made out of? Flat-ish rocks
Is there a UVB light? Sometimes

What have you been trying to feed it? ReptoMin and some veggies
When was the last time your turtle ate? Yesterday (I feed him every second day)

How big is the tank/pond/enclosure? 30 gallons (Soon upgrading)
Is the tank near a window? No
Is the tank in a room with a lot of activity? No

Have you read the Basic Care section? Yes
Have you searched the forums for similar situations? Yeah

Is there any other unusual activity/symptoms? MATING WITH A PIECE OF PLASTIC

[devilduck]

Looks more like a territorial display than a mating dance.

[jgreerberube]

So if I put a female in with him, will they mate? Also, how do you tell how old a turtle is?

[Diamondbacks4Life]

Hmm at the begining of the video it does look like he really trying to mate with it. As for putting a female in with him. Could be a very bad idea. Since he is housed alone usually males that are housed alone become very aggressive to new turtle especially females and attack them. So you could be making a bad mistake. There really is no way to stop the behavior either. As for age, unless you had the turtle since he was a hatchling it is about impossiable to tell. If you got under 4 inches then you know he was around 1year old.

[jgreerberube]

Any guesses for a 4.5", a 5.5", and a 6.5"?