Equipment Review and Discussion :: I am so unprepared!!

[foreveryoung2010]

I just got two RES turtles for an early Christmas present, but I had no idea that they were just babies! I wasn't even aware what kind of turtles they were. We are living out of the country, so we just assumed they were full grown little turtles! Now I have them in way to small of a tank, and we are going to be here for a while. I don't think that there are tanks and such available here, or affordable. I was wondering what I could do for the next six months or so for them! What are some tank substitutes, what are the necessities MUST have items? How big will they be by August 2011? They are both male if that helps. I think I have their diet, I am giving them pellet things that the lady told us that they ate, and I gave them carrot shreds today with the pellets. I am going to get tuna fish canned, and they haven't ate anything yet, and I am worried! It doesn't get cold where I live, but just in case I heat up their water. I'm going to heat it at night to just to be sure they'll be ok. I have seen them bask in the sun so thats good right?
I'm just worried that they won't eat and then they'll die
I need help!!

[ry4nk1msres]

at the top of the home page, there are little navigation buttons: basic care, water quality, etc that should bring you up to par, take a trip tp the pet store, they'll help ya out, god luck and enjoy your new little friends.

[meltedspork]

If they are babies you can't tell what sex they are. You can sex them when they get to be about 4 inches or so. Males grow to be 7-9 inches and females 10-12 inches approx. If you can't get a bigger tank, get as big of a Rubbermaid (or other brand) plastic storage bin as you can find. They should have 10 gallons of water per inch of shell. If you can't keep them together in a big enough tank (and you may not be able to anyway, because many turtles end up fighting), separate them and give them each their own habitat.

Must haves:
NO GRAVEL (they can swallow it)
heat lamp (household incandescent light will work)
UVB lamp (very important for healthy shell)
basking area
heated water
filter (or be prepared to change out the water very frequently)
pellets, leafy greens, protein only as a treat

[foreveryoung2010]

Ok, so I have the rocks for them, and I have the basking area. Will putting them out in the sun all day (it gets in the high 70's) be ok? Or do I have to have a light no matter what? And is heating the water in the microwave like I've been doing ok? I was planning on cleaning out their holding area everyday because of having no filter. Does the sun rays make up for no UVB lamp?

[meltedspork]

When you say out in the sun do you mean outside or inside? The sunlight needs to be unfiltered so if you are putting them outside all day, then yes, that will work. Also do you have a thermometer you can use to check their water temps? Since they are babies they need pretty warm water, around 78-80 degrees. Adult RES need 75-78 degrees.

[foreveryoung2010]

Yea, I've been putting them straight outside, as soon as I get up. They are a lot more active when I do that! We are going shopping today, so I will look into getting one along with a lamp...would a lamp help keep the water warm at night?

[VeipaCray]

You only want to run your lamp part of the day... to mimmic natural light cycles. While a lamp will heat the water a little, it won't take the place of a proper aquarium heater.