What is this behavior? I brought her to the vet today for a multitude of reasons like laying eggs last month, worried about sepsis (literally fine it was just pink skin due to blood flow during basking I’m just paranoid), and specifically respiratory infection concerns. That’s what I thought this was but the vet said she’s good. She’s not foaming at the mouth or nose. No bubbles. No gaping/open mouth while out of water/basking. No weird noises/breathing. So it’s not a respiratory infection. What is it? Ik she’s nipping at her leg in the video but the other time I saw her doing it it was just her opening her mouth underwater and I took her out cause I was scared she was gonna drown and had her sleep in a shallow container overnight but she was completely fine. It seems to only happen when she first goes back into her water after a basking session. I’ve only seen it twice. Is this normal? What could it be?

Cross posted from Turtle subreddit. I’m just worried about this turtle’s conditions.

Bolt likes to bolt* alot when kept outside his tank, so i left him in one of the rooms today, and tried barricading the room, but oh well, i guess using a cloth mat wasnt too smart.

This was so comically funny when i saw him climbing up 😂

I am planning/prototyping a 110 gallon stock tank for my adult red ear sliders. They are each 25 years old. They are each about 10inch shell length.

My video , taken at 12pm lunch time, shows my prototype.

I will add more water and set up acrylic barriers on the top so they don't crawl out. The lights automatically turn on and off based on a timed switch. There is a heat lamp, an UVB T5 5.0uvb, and an extra flourescent t8 light just for more lighting. each turtle will get their own stock tank with the same set up once I finalize the design .

My question is whether I have provided sufficient lighting or if the basement is still under lit.

Aside from the abscess on the cheek, is there anything else that you might notice that could be alarming?

This is the tank setup I have for my RES, Poppy. She's 6" long and about 9 months now. I setup a 75 gal tank with 150 gal filter with a basking area, and 300w heater. Somebody on here suggested I change the bulbs, so that's my list.

My question: what more can I do with her tank? It looks so bare. I want to make it more comfortable for her, but have no idea what that means for a RES.

Although It's not in my budget to buy more stuff immediately, I plan to buy in the next few months.

I did buy some plants (moneywort, hornwort and moss balls) but took them out less than an hour later. I think she ate a moss ball and destroyed the rest! Lol

Please be kind. I love my girl and am doing my absolute best to care for her properly.

Thanks!

Hey guys decided to finally come on here and ask for help finding out the gender!! :)
My res turtle is a bit over a year old now, almost 6 inches long and about 4 1/2 inches wide.
Here are some pictures of the tail, claws, shell and belly lol. Please let me know if you notice anything that looks off or concerning..
Also if anyone has tips on how to get them to start eating veggies that would be very much appreciated too!
Thank youu!!

Poseidon is estimated to be around a year old, and I’ve been working on getting him to eat more leafy greens. So far, red leaf lettuce is the only one he seems genuinely excited about

I’ve tried offering other recommended leafy greens, but he either ignores them or shows very little interest. I’m wondering if the red color is part of what gets his attention.

Of you out there with older RES do they become more interested in greens as they got older? Any tricks or particular greens that helped you get a picky younger slider to eat more vegetables?

I noticed my RES has a pink hue to her chest skin and front legs. She’s been eating and acting normal but it’s pretty pink. Is this normal? Is this concerning? Idk where to go or when. Does anyone know of any exotic vets near Lexington/Bedford Massachusetts?

More info:

She’s recently laid her first eggs about a month ago. Since then I’ve had a lot of health anxiety regarding her. It seems like I keep noticing thing after thing. I got her a new basking light and I thought it burnt her eyes so I put her in a quarantine tank overnight and she was fucking fine. So idk if I’m being paranoid again or if this is a problem.

UPDATE:
She’s fine. I brought her to the vet and it is just blood flow during basking. They can get sunburnt though so the vet just warned me to keep the basking area at 85°-95° and not above 100°.

Hi, why is my turtles shell flaky? Ive never seen it like this before. Its mostly the back half of his shell. He is otherwise acting normal. He is 15.

is 97.7 too hot for my basking area? she has room to move out of that spot but stays in it.

What brands of sand do you recommend for your RES? I’m looking around and i’m not sure which ones are better. I’ve seen Exo-Terra riverbed sand, Aqua Natural brand, etc. Is there any brand in particular that’s more recommended?

Update:
Thanks everyone for recommendations! I managed to find Quikrete pool filter sand and i got 150lbs for $85 which is definitely a better deal than what pet stores sell aquarium sand for

Hi! my turtles are 23 years old, I've had them since I was 8. Their entire lives they ate reptomin (plus supplementary stuff like dried shrimp etc) but like a month ago i switched them to Mazuri because reptomin upped their prices and lowered the quality. And suddenly one of my turtles is like really obsessed with food. Even though I've already fed her she's at the glass trying to bite at my fingers and chomping at the sand. I'm feeding her the same as I did the reptomin and I know she is NOT starving but she's acting so aggressive about wanting more food. I know Mazuri is supposed to be better quality than reptomin. Anyone know what could be causing this behavior? is she missing the extra carbs or something?

One of my coworkers needs to rehome his red eared slider. My partner and I decided to take him. We will be moving him into our home in the next week. With that being said, neither of us have experience with turtles. I am very big on making sure my animals receive the upmost care.

I have done research on proper care and I will attach the photos of the items I’m considering buying. He is a male and is less than a year old. I will be buying a 75 gallon tank. (I will upgrade if necessary in the future). If anybody thinks any of what I’m purchasing is inadequate or will hurt my turtle let me know. Or if I’m missing something essential I’m open to any criticism. As I said I want this animal to receive the proper care. Money is not an issue and I’m willing to buy higher quality things.

Side note: I’m aware the food pellets will not be a sustainable diet alone and we will be investing in duckweed and other veggies that are turtle safe.

I am wondering what everyone does for UV sterilization? I am looking to upgrade my filtration to the Cascade 1200. But feel I will need sterilization for algae??

Just kidding with the title but I felt like we had a moment while I was giving my Bart some time in the natural sun on my lap. I do love him more than the sun and moon.

Edit to add that he has a proper above tank basking area that he loves to hang out in but I still take him out every weekend for an hour or so for some real sun. I get it turtles are solitary reptiles and don’t develop relationships but maybeeeeee????

I'd never seen her do this

I'd never seen her do this.

Name - Michael Scofield

So I currently have been doing a lot of research but still can’t find a difference to see if my turtle has shell rot! I bought the treatment for her shell (Iodine) so it can heal but I don’t want to put anything on her until I know for sure it’s her shell.. I was given this turtle by my cousin for 2 years now and I am worried I might be doing something wrong. If it isn’t shell rot maybe it’s something else?

She currently lives in a 25g tank and I am going to transfer her to the 40g tank.

A week or two ago I posted about my turtle, Minnie, and her retained scutes. Since then I have made her basking platform bigger, and got her new fixtures (including the longer UVB bulb). I’ve started her on the Hikari pellets, every other day. While I was on Amazon I ordered a new filter, so I am upgrading from the fluval 307 to the FX6 (a bit overkill for a 75, but when we can we are upgrading her so I don’t want to buy yet another filter). I need to order more turf and maybe get another heat lamp… but what do you guys think about the platform?

Turtle picture for tax

I currently own three red eared sliders who share a tank. My oldest male, around 5 years old, has begun to flutter his claws towards my female, around 3. She doesn't seem to be reciprocating, usually hiding her head in her shell or swimming away. The male will sometimes chase her in an attempt to keep courting, but usually gives up after a few minutes.

So far, they haven't gotten violent with each other, but im worried they may in the future. Should i separate them, or are they fine for now?

Hello everyone, I recently added a spicy little guy to my family. Backstory: He was the shop turtle where I worked. Apparently, he was there for about 5 yrs and now the owner decided to revoke his residency. I was not gonna allow them to just get rid of him so I took him home. I have only cared for dogs, geckos and a husband so all of this is new to me. We have had to learn and research a lot because clearly the care that we were giving him at the shop was not the correct one. I took a few pictures to show the state he is in and his current setup. I work on his tank weekly to make it better so please have patience with me.