Feeding and Nutrition :: the bird and the bees

[daryl]

So i have 2 turtles. one is about 5 inches and the other is about 3 inches

i was sure that i had 2 males at first but...
the small guy "tyrone" seems to be a girl these days though...
now that (s)hes letting the bigger one "encyclopedia brown" who's definetly a boy, bang away, nightly.

my first question is...do turtles have gay tendancies?

and the second is...if tyrone lays eggs, which i know is very unlikely at her size right now...is there any natural way to prevent pregnancy?

id rather not have to swipe and discard the eggs...it just seems so mean

thanks!

[missibsu]

Unfortunately, females lay eggs regardless of fertilization. So, just keep a mindset that they aren't fertile and throw them away.

Females also need special nesting areas. Something to keep in mind for the future.

[scripta_elegans]

I think a 3 inch turtle is unlikely to be sexually mature yet. The best way to prevent fertilized eggs is to seperate the turtles. The female will still lay eggs however, and they should be disposed of. It will not be psychologically traumatizing for the turtle, as they do not take any real interest in their young, and might actually hurt them if left in the same tank. I don't mean to sound cold hearted, but in my opinion, there are way too many Red ear sliders around looking for homes to try to hatch more. If you have a huge pond for them to live in, that's another story. But you will have serious trouble trying to adopt the little guys out to good homes.