FEEDING

Variety of Diet

Turtles should not be fed only pellets! A proper diet for RES and similar species should have the following proportions:

•Vegetables and water plants: 50%

•Commercial foods: 25%

•Live proteins: 25%

For veggies, don't feed iceberg lettuce as it has no nutrients. (Actually, why are you eating it? Go buy yourself some Romaine!) Also don't feed spinach or anything in the spinach family. The ratio of oxalic acid to calcium in these foods is too high for turtles. Good choices for food are dandelions (the ones in your yard are good if there are no pesticides); carrot tops, mustard greens, carrots, bell pepper, and squash. The best veggies are water plants like anacharis, water hyacinth, water lettuce, frog bit, hornwort, and duckweed. While expensive in a pet store, these are easy to grow in a separate tank or pond, and they are cheap if you buy in bulk online. For commercial food, look for something that has low protein and low fat. Dried shrimp are an absolute no-no! They are like candy to turtles. Tastes great, zero nutrients, and turtles that eat them may refuse other foods for weeks.

Stubborn Turtles

Baby turtles (less than one year), will prefer protein to plant matter. Some turtles will continue to prefer live food and pellets even in adulthood. Don't give in! Think of your turtle like a 5 year old child. Sure, the kid WANTS to eat ice cream for dinner every night of the week, but you make him eat his salad anyway. Same deal with turtles. Turtles can go for two weeks without eating food, so don't give in to begging.

VITAMINS AND MINERALS

Supplements

There are many vitamin supplements for turtles on the market. Not only are these not necessary for a turtle eating a healthy diet, they can actually cause overdoses. There should also be no need for "medicated sulfa blocks" unless prescribed by a veterinarian.

Calcium

Calcium is essential for turtles' growth. Consider how much calcium you need for your bones, and then recall how many bones your turtle has! While it is natural in many vegetables, it is a good idea to provide a little extra dose once a week. Three common sources of calcium are listed below. Note: Be careful about the ratio of calcium to phosphorous. Phosphorus inhibits calcium from being useful. Avoid feeding your turtle spinach or anything in the brassica family.

Cuttlefish Bone

Cuttlefish bone is a wonderful calcium source. In addition to being a calcium supplement, it keeps the turtle's beak trimmed, and many turtles enjoy playing with it. You can find cuttlebone in the bird section of pet stores. Sometimes it is sold in bulk bins cheaper than in the packages. Rinse the cuttlebone and remove any metal backing that was attached (these are to attach it to a bird cage). Just let it float in the turtle's tank. Rinse it once a week to prevent anything from growing on it. It will slowly dissolve, and your turtle will nibble on it. Some turtles will attempt to eat the entire thing in one meal. This can cause an overdose. If your turtle does this, break up the cuttlebone with a hammer. Put in one small piece every week to regulate their intake.

Calcium Dusting

You can also purchase calcium powder and dust it on their food. These calcium dusts usually contain other nutrients as well, but the use of this is controversial due to the possible overdose of other nutrients. This does not work well for aquatic turtles since they must eat under water. It does work better for land turtles.

Calcium Blocks

You can also make your own calcium blocks with plaster, or you can buy calcium blocks. Be aware that many store bought calcium blocks are "medicated", and the use of these items is debatable in healthy turtles.

Vitamin D3

Vitamin D3 is necessary for calcium absorption. Turtles naturally generate Vitamin D3 from exposure to UVB rays. The best source of UVB is direct from the sun. The secondary source is from a UVB light (must specifically say "UVB" on it). These lights do not last permanently, so be sure to replace it every 6 months or every year, depending on the light and the manufacturer's specifications. Just because the UVB bulb is producing light does not mean it's producing viable UVB! The bulb will continue to produce visible light long after the UVB coating has worn off. In summer, consider letting your turtle go outside in a properly set up outdoor habitat, such as a kiddy pool. This will allow him to get plenty of good UVB direct from the sun.

Vitamin A

Both too little and too much Vitamin A can cause severe problems in turtles. The main symptom is swollen eyes for both illnesses. Be sure that your turtle gets Vitamin A by feeding foods like carrot, yam, and other colorful veggies. Beef liver is another good source for Vitamin A and other nutrients. Be warned, it is very stinky. We suggest feeding a carrot peel once a week.

EGG LAYING

Turtles are like chickens; they lay eggs all the time, regardless of whether they are fertilized. Most turtles will lay once a year. However, females in captivity may lay multiple times a year.

Egg Binding

When a female cannot find an appropriate nesting spot, she may not lay her clutch. The eggs harden and calcify inside of her body. Once they are calcified, they cannot pass through her cloaca. This is known as egg binding, and it is fatal.

There are multiple ways to take care of egg binding. If it is caught early, a hormone injection (given by the vet), will usually do the trick. Other options are the vet extracting the eggs, or surgery. As you can imagine, these last two are very difficult to do on a turtle. If your turtle is egg bound, see a qualified reptile vet. If you can't find one, a vet that specializes in birds may also be able to help since birds can also have this problem.

Nesting Area

The nesting area should have lots of loose sand/soil so the turtle can dig and should closely resemble an area a turtle would seek out in the wild. Different species prefer different substrates, for example - a mixture of sand/soil for Red Eared Sliders, but a mixture of leafy litter and the addition of logs for Mud and Musk Turtles. Make sure any substrate is free of chemicals/pesticides ("organic" would be the best possible choice). The substrate should be deep enough for the female to dig down to (approximately as deep as her body length... for most turtles that would be at least 10 inches deep). The egg laying area should be dark, quiet and secluded... and a heat emitter is recommended, since the female prefers to lay her eggs in a warm spot. The egg-laying area can be constructed out of different materials, like wood, or a big plastic tub/bin can be used (preferably not the see-through kind, since it will stress your turtle even more).

Signs of Egg Laying

•Kicking at back legs (not to remove loose skin)

•Attempting to escape from the tank

•Digging

•Laying an egg in the water

HIBERNATION

In the wild, red eared sliders and similar species will hibernate for 10-12 weeks. However, your own turtle may not live in the appropriate conditions for hibernation. It is ok for turtles to not hibernate though, and many turtle keepers do not hibernate their turtles. Regardless of whether you have the right setup for hibernation, never hibernate a turtle that is ill or less than 4 inches.

Indoor Turtles

Indoor turtles should not be hibernated. It is much too difficult to replicate the environment they need indoors, and hibernating without the right conditions can be fatal to a turtle. Even experienced owners do not hibernate indoor turtles. You may notice that your turtle slows down a little or eats a little less during the colder months. As long as the turtle is eating, everything is fine. Keep the temperatures at the normal level. You may need to increase the heat in order to maintain normal summer temperatures.

Outdoor Turtles

Outdoor turtles may be hibernated IF they have the appropriate nesting area and the right temperatures. If you cannot provide these, it is best to remove the turtle from the outdoor pond and place them in an indoor tank for the winter.

Nesting Area

A turtle needs 18 inches of mud BELOW the frost line in order to hibernate. The pond needs to be fairly deep to accommodate this. For example, if your frost line is 36 inches down, you need to dig down 54 inches, install the pond liner, and then add 18 inches of loose mud and leaves back into the pond.

Temperatures

The temperature must get cold and STAY cold in order for a turtle to hibernate. The area around 72 F is known as the "death zone". This is the temperature where a turtle will stop eating in preparation to hibernate, but will not yet go to sleep. To safely hibernate, the temperature should stay below 55 F.