General Care Discussion

Last edited by Kingbird44 on Tue May 03, 2016 4:53 pm, edited 2 times in total.

Hi folks,

I'm new to the turtle world. I'm an experienced pet owner with 2 kitties, but this is my first tanked animal. I recently rescued a ~2+ inch RES from a friend who got it at a carnival ( :cry:

) as a hatchling about 6 or 7 months ago. For the past 6 months (before ~2.5 weeks ago when I took the turtle), the poor little guy NEVER left the water. It was in a 5 gallon tank with no lights, no heater, little decoration, and an exposed tank in a busy room. Despite that, the little guy has learned that people = food.

So needless to say, I couldn't take it anymore and now have myself a new buddy.

I have done lots of internet reading. But I was hoping that some more experienced owners might review my setup and give some input on my questions / issues below.

SETUP:
20 gal long tank (I know I will need to upgrade. I will be moving soon, and I would like to wait as long as I can to acquire larger items)
Aqueon QuietFlow internal filter- rated for 40 gal tank I think
Stick type water heater (100 watt)
ZooMed floating dock (small)
Double fixture lamp (with 75 watt basking bulb and separate UVB bulb), plus lamp bracket (I recently added the bracket because I needed to raise the water level- the water / dock are now only 4-5 inches down from the grate top, so the lights are few inches above that)
Small log thing, 2 plastic plants (that it loves to hide in), a small silk plant, some other misc small things and a bit of Anubias spp.

I would like to add a couple ghost shrimp and snails (maybe Mystery snails since they are a bit larger), although I know that especially the shrimp may very well get eaten.

FOOD:
Little guy has access to green leaf lettuce every day (but this is a pretty recent development as I originally was thinking it didn't need so many greens since it's so young. It gobbles the lettuce), hatchling pellets (ZooMed), about a 'head size' every day- I was probably overfeeding these a bit, before I got the lettuce
Dried mealworms / shrimp / crickets as snacks
Also some cuttlebone

Water temp is around 78 (was a bit too high I think, 80ish, but I turned it down recently). Basking doc temp is usually hovering below 90. Only the heat light is direcly above the basking dock. I did it this way because if I have both lights (heat and UV) above the dock, it would cover the whole dock, and I wanted there to be a cooler / dimmer part of the dock. But this means that the UVB light is only directly above the turtle when the turtle is in the water.

QUESTIONS / ISSUES:
Sedge is a happy little turtle, except I'm mildly concerned about 2 things. First, Sedge is shedding a lot in the past few days or so. There are translucent pieces of skin (not just bits, more like sheets) hanging off of him / her. I can see them when the turtle is in the water. I am not sure if this is a delayed response to the prior 6 months of NEVER leaving the water. I want to make sure it is not because of something else I am doing though. Second, and possibly related to the first: Sedge is pretty happy in the water (and will come take a mealworm out of my fingers), but is VERY skittish on land. This means that I think / assume the turtle spends a lot of time basking when I'm not there- but when I'm around, Sedge barely leaves the water. He / she will now venture onto the dock with me in the same room, but as soon as a make any movements, it slips right back into the water. Obviously I can't be out of my apartment all the time... and my place isn't big enough to be home and not scare the turtle off the dock frequently. I'm hoping Sedge will get more comfortable, but I'm a little worried that he / she is not basking enough when I'm around (and especially if this is causing skin shedding problems, etc.)

Otherwise, Sedge is active, bright eyed, eating and pooping, and healthy looking. The shell seems smooth, although I got a little concerned with a couple little bumpy spots recently. Not sure if it amounts to anything, but I want to avoid incorrect feeding / pyramiding, etc.

A few days ago I got test strips for nitrate, pH, etc. On first test, everything was OK except pH was on the low side (close to 6 maybe?). I also got a liquid ammonia test kit. The first test was in the low/fine range, although I was a bit surprised it wasn't virtually zero since I had done a ~65% water change maybe the night before.

Lastly, I'm finding that I need to clean the tank / do a significant % water change more frequently than I would have thought based on my reading and my setup. I've got a battery powered Mr. Cleaner vacuum on the way, so I'm hoping that help. The lettuce seems to be making for especially messy poop though...

Anyway, any feedback would be appreciated!
Thanks!
M

Edit: here's some pics!

https://drive.google.com/folderview?id= ... sp=sharing

Welcome to the site! What kind of thermometer are you using? I'd cut the pellet amount in half -- so max should be 1/2 head size amount. Dried mealworms and shrimp should be used sparingly or can be skipped. Don't worry about the lettuce (but don't use to much since he is new to it), lets make sure he adjusts to his new home first. Is he basking yet?

Skin shedding is normal, though it should not be excessive. Perhaps the water temperature needs to be rechecked. As for being skittish... that's sometimes normal when put in a new environment. Some adjust more than others, but every RES will have their own personality.

Any pictures of the setup?

Hmm, my photo files seem to be too big to upload. What is considered too much lettuce? He loves it, but poops out a lot of little lettuce flakes.

I have one analog thermometer under water in the cooler side of the tank and a thermometer on land above the Basking area.

You can use a 3rd party host if the pics are too large. Or email 'em to me. Since he's small, I'd say look at using a lettuce amount that is around twice the size of his head, though that's not a real measurement. Check his poop, as long it's mostly firm then I consider that enough.

Picture link added. I think I'm feeding too much lettuce. He seems to want to eat his body weight in lettuce if allowed. Thanks.

That's a pretty good first tank. Since he's on a large desk, maybe cover part of the tank during most of the day to let him get some privacy. He'll become more used to your presence.

I also usually feed lettuce/veggies in the morning, then pellets at night.

Hmm, thats a new idea. You mean actually cover part of the front of the tank? The back and sides are covered.

I'll plan on keeping feeding ~1/2 head of pellets and some veggies every day, maybe add in some carrot and cucumber.

I hope his shedding issue clears up soon. Does it ever make sense to take him out of the tank and help him get rid of the dead skin (by gently scrubbing with a toothbrush)? He doesn't get too upset when I handle him.

Thanks for all your help!

Yeah, just get a piece of cardboard and place it against the glass. The shedding should be under control by itself. As long as it's thin and wispy, then it's normal (not to be confused by skin fungus).

Looks like you are doing very well for a new turtle owner and I welcome you also to the forums.

Thanks

General Care Discussion :: New RES setup, more experienced feedback please?

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