Does ANyone else out there have western painted turtles?

[tyryce]

my turtles when growing will shed skin, it is white in colour and it floats around off of them when they are swimming around. I don't think they should shed all the time though, but mine tend to shed skin when they are growing through a growth period...it seems to happen just before they start shedding the scutes on their shell. Leroy is really small right now and likely will not begin shedding shell for a while. When I got Lucy she was about twice Leroy's size. She didn't start shedding shell until the following year, she grew bigger but the shed didn't start shedding until she got older.

So it could be that he is shedding skin...this means he is growing

Yesterday when I was out at one of my work sites which is just north of Rafferty Dam here, I started driving down the grid road and seen a painted turtle in the middle of the road. I lined up the truck so the wheels were on either side I didn't have much time to react...I thought I had run him over but I didn't So I went back to grab him off the road and to take him over to the water body that I was working around. He was a fair size. His shell length about 7 inches. He wasn't heavy at all though...not like my smaller turtles but turtles here probably came out of hibernation only a month or so ago so he probably really needs a good meal or two! Anyway he really tried to run when I picked him up and I had to drive with him on my lap for a little to get him where I wanted to put him. He had really nice colouring but I noticed he had a sore on the back of his neck...maybe something tried to eat him. Anyway I got him to safety in the water and he kinda hung around for a little keeping an eye on me.

One thing I did notice though was that his shell was shaped nicer than my turtles. Lucy...my youngest turtle has a bit of pyramiding in her shell and I think this is because she grew too fast...I overfed my turtles in the first couple of years I had them. She is okay and very active but her shell is not completely smooth like the wild one I found yesterday.

SO how is Leroy doing now? It will be fun to watch him grow into an adult turtle.

Danielle

 

[bubadeven98]

hey kate,

about the whole shed thing, mi not positive, but i think it's because instead of finding a new shell they grow with it, and i'v noticed it on deven too. and on my screen saver that u and maddie thought was deven, it looks like it's sheding, too, but that's also a musk turtle and it's actually on the shell that i notice it. anyway im off again! bye!

 

[babyelvissocute]

Thanks guys. I redid Leroys tank again, because everytime I turned the filter on he would get like sucked up and he hated it and clung onto rocks. So I got a bunch of large gravel and a large ramp water bowl with his little cave and basking rocks and plants. He seems to like it better and it doesnt smell as bad and its easier to clean. So when he gets a little bigger I can go with the old setup.

~Kaitlyn, Elvis, Leroy~

 

[tyryce]

Yeah, as he gets older and stronger you can use a stronger filter because he will be able to handle the current better. As you add more water you can use a fake plastic plant to float around. they like using these so they can float in the water more easily or havinfg something to hang on to to have a rest from swimming. I have one in my tank and when my turtles nap or go to sleep for the night it gives them a place to secure themselves and still stick their noses out of the water.

Danielle

 

[babyelvissocute]

Thanks for all the info! And I'm glad to say that Leroy now eats completly pellets, with a little shrimp once a week as a treat. And do you remember how I said I put the fake gravel in his tank? I never saw him eat it, because he knows he eats outside his tank, but is that still safe? Like it wont hurt his tiny feet or anything?

~Kaitlyn, Elvis, Leroy~

 

[tyryce]

The gravel won't hurt him. I keep rock on the bottom of my tank because my turtles like to dig and scavange around in the rock. The gravel will also keep the floaties down in the tank between water changes.
For some reason turtles may sometimes try to eat really small pebbles. I don't think I have ever seen mine do it but there is talk of impaction problems. I haven't seen them do this but the rock I keep in there tank is too large for them to swallow. If this is something you may be concerned about you can make sure that the rock is larger in case he decides to eat it.

Personally I feel that if turtles try and ingest rock they do so in the wild too and there must be a reason for it but I am no expert on the subject and I have never had this problem.

The rock won't hurt his feet or anything and will help him grip to the bottom of the tank better. You don't want to have anything sharp or jagged though.

Have you tried to introduce greens to your turtle. Maybe try to do this when he is younger because as they get older I think they are supposed to increase their intake of vegetation. Has he used his cuttle bone yet? I think it took Lucy a while before she started using hers.

 

[babyelvissocute]

Ok good, the gravel is too large for him to ingest. And I try to give him greens, sometimes he eats them, but usually not. He tried the cuttle bone, but I dont think he knows its food cause he tries to put the whole thing in his mouth, realizes he cant, and spits it out. Its really kind of funny.

~Kaitlyn, Elvis, Leroy~

 

[tyryce]

:lol: Yeah I could see that!. My turtles will often try to eat everything at least once in their tank. if it is something new they will see if it is food.

He will use the cuttle bone as he needs it. It is a good way for them to get the calcium they need.

 

[babyelvissocute]

I know all about them trying everything! When I first put the fake plant in that, he must have kept chewing it, because I came home from school and one off the leaves were completly chewed off! I dont think he liked it, he hasnt tried it again...
Anyway, what should the nighttime temp be? I'm just letting it go natural, because my room doesnt get too cold, but I dont know what I could do about the AC when it comes on. Maybe put a blanket over the tank? leave a lttle corner off so air can still circulate though? My mom really doesnt like the cages down stairs, ecspecially his because he can make up quite a stink! And what bulb do you use for the daytime? I use a regular 75 watt housebuld, but his tank still seems cold. And I'm worried about UVB. The one I got didnt work when I got it. I ordered a light holder online along with the filter, but it never came. So he has only had UVB the first few days I got him. I think for now I might just switch off, Elvis will get UVB from 7-4 and Leroy will get it from 4-8? Will that work untill I get that staightened out?

~Kaitlyn, Elvis, Leroy~

 

[tyryce]

Hello,

For nightime temps I don't think they need to be kept too warm. I have a water heater in my tank that is set to about 72-74 degrees which is warm. At night they usually sleep in the water. Do not worry about an additional heat source and make sure the tank is dark at night..no lights because they need that cycle. Mine don't sleep when lights are on in the living room. If you turn them on they usually wake up. (You can leave the rom lights on later in the evening or whatever but he may not go to sleep right away. Is the turtle you have native to the area where you live? My turtles are so I try to use the temps outside as a guide...except for the winter months of course because I do not hibernate my turtles.

I also use a regular household bulb for a heat source but as far as the wattage you may need to play around with that to get the right basking temp. I point the heat source on their basking spot because that is where they get out of the water to bask and heat up their bodies. You must have a digital probe thermometer to accurately take the basking temps. Take the basking temp right where Leroy would bask outside of the water. You use a 75 Watt? That seems like a lot of heat for a smaller tank. I have a 55 gallon and use a 60Watt over the basking spot. It only needs to be really warm in their basking area.

When purchasing a UVB do not get the coil type get a flourescent tube light. I am not exactly sure what is the best strength to get for Aquatic Turtles...I use Zoomed Repti sun 5.0 but have been told this is too strong for the winter months...I still have to look into this a bit more. Being summer you could try and get the same bulb. I place the UVB fixture across the tank so that they are getting UVB when they are on their basking spot just like they would if they were outside basking on a rock or something. If you are using a screen top on yuor tank the screen will filter out some of the UVB. I cut out my screen over their basking area so that they get the output of UVB from the bulb when basking. If it will be awhile before you get the UVB try taking Leroy out about 1 hour every couple of days or a couple of times during the week when it is warm outside and sit with him or follow him around and he will get natural UVB which is better than any bulb you can buy. I took my turtles outside last weekend for a couple of hours to run around in the grass so they got lots of natural UVB. If you can take Leroy outside this week to get some natural UVB do this until you get a bulb...you shouldn't have to steal ELvis's then. Just make sure no chemical has been sprayed on the lawn before letting him walk around on it. If you are not able to do this then you will have to try and share the bulb between the two animals.

When you get the UVB Leroy will have to be about 12" within the UVB. So how is he doing? Has he grown at all?

Danielle

 

[babyelvissocute]

I use a 75 watt now becasue I took the undertank heater out, and put the big bowl there. And for some reason I cant get his tank very warm, even with a 75 watt. Maybe because my mom buys the cheap kinds? (alot of pets=alot of different light bulbs, she said it adds up) Do you think I should put a under tank heater on the bottom, and heat up the gravel? At least his basking rock holds heat and gets warm. (not too warm, its warm like luckewarm water) The good news is hes starting to eat more pellets. Oh and yes he is native to my area. His cage is in my room, along with all my other pets, and the only things thats on at night is my TV. But thats on the other side of my room. Is that fine? He sleeps just fine, under his little hut.

Heres some pics: Him when I first got him

(Compared next to my sisters Littlest Pet shop turtle)

And here he is now, taken today:

(compared to a quarter, but he wouldnt stay still, lol)

~Kaitlyn, Elvis, Leroy~

 

[LJean]

He is too cute!

 

[babyelvissocute]

Thanks He already has a little personality coming out, lol