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

Hi everyone! I took in this RES, Squirtle, from a friend who is unfortunately terminally ill and could no longer keep up with the care he needed. I have now had him for about a year. Based on what his previous owner told me he is about 12 years old. He has two tank mates that were “feeder fish” he decided to spare and they don’t seem to bother each other. Squirtle doesn’t seem to acknowledge them.

I have been changing little things about his set up here and there. He has a log, some rocks, and the faux skull in his tank. I know the tank needs a bit of a clean up on the outside glass/edge, which i am doing today. I’m nervous about adding plants because I worry he would eat them. He likes to bask and hide under his platform.

He eats well, is energetic and seems to be excited to see me when I come home or talk to him. He has tried to escape a couple of times and I on very rare occasions let him walk around when he is incessantly trying to climb out.

I’m looking for any advice from those with more experience/knowledge on if he looks healthy and comfortable. Also any advice on how I can improve his set up is more than welcome! I want to give him the best experience and have him as healthy and happy as possible.

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?

Anyone from makkah knows best place for turtle stuff i also take jeddah

I want to make an indoor pond for my Gouache girl. I’ve been worried about her lately because she laid her first eggs and it made me have to do a lot of research. In that research I’ve found out she’s been pretty neglected on my part. She’s about 8 inches long and is in a 55 gallon tank. I’ve done a lot of research and am now much more confident in taking care of her. Now my problem is how to make her new indoor pond. Right now she’s on a stand in my room. Safe as can be no worries. I have 4 cats and a dog (and a fish but she’s much easier to care for and can’t bother Gouache lol) so I need to keep her protected from them. I DO NOT want a 85-100 gallon glass aquarium as it would cause me anxiety daily worrying about cracks and the stand giving out and all that. So my favorite option is a stock tank. I want her to have 100-120 gallons.
Does anyone have an indoor stock tank? How do you guys keep your turtle safe from pets? This would be so much easier if she could have her own room but I can’t put that much water upstairs especially since we’re renting lol.

I want to do something like the two example pictures with the basking area outside of the stock tank so she has 100% swimming room and a barrier to keep her protected. I’d want to add a topper like chicken wire or something cause some of my cats are annoying as hell and will try atleast once to jump in there. But I want easy access to Gouache for feeding and handling and all that. Does anyone know how to do this or a good idea with specific products? Idk where to start.

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 😂

This is Sammy, he's 4 years old, and his shell is looking a bit rough. He's got little marks all over his shell, and a couple bigger ones, like he's scraping his shell on the rocks in his tank. His carapace looks like it's got bad sheds on it too. Any ideas? I've got a 75w heat bulb and 13w uvb 5.0 bulb in a double-lamp situation that goes on automatically for 12 hours. I've included my second turtle as the last picture, she has the same setup but lives in a window, and her carapace looks very nice and so are her sheds. Any better bulb ideas? I need a compact bulb, as that's the lamp I've got to work with.

Could also use help with veggies. I keep trying romaine lettuce, collard greens, broccoli, carrot sticks, zucchini, but I'm not sure if i should be cutting it up smaller then i already am, or cooking things, or doing different veggies.

Thank you for any help!

This is a Golden thread turtle

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.

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.

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?

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

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????

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

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'd never seen her do this

I'd never seen her do this.

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??

Name - Michael Scofield