Turtles

[first_time_owner]

Hi all,
ive always liked turtles and was just wondering whats the better one o get a long neck or a short neck or is there any other smaller species? whats the deal with the heat is it on 1 side or what or do they need a basking light? would i be able to keep 1 in its tank as an adult? and does the tank need a filter?
thanks

 

[pete12]

yes the tank needs a reasonably powerful filter because they deposit alot of waste

 

[Forensick]

personally i prefer long necks.... they have such happy stupid grins...

you'll definately need a filter tho... they are very messy
i have one 1500 and one 2000L cannister filters in my tank

i have 2 long necks in a 5'2'2 tanks (both are 12cm)
but they will one day end up in a pond outside

i have a UVB light, and a basking lamp for them.

and i heat the water to 22-26 degrees

 

[Pythonking]

hey bud I just went through all this I've bought a filter water heater turtle dock and uv repti glo batten. its a bit void of scenary at the moment, I was considering a heat light but after taking temps with a infared thermometer its showing that theres its about 3 degrees warmer on the dock then to what i have the temp set to in the water so i'm thinking it should be ok.

 

[Kitah]

turtles create far more waste than fish, so you need a good external canister filter (my tank has a 1500lph canister filter on it, has 4 media trays)

for the short neck vs long neck, its personal preference. I have a kreffts (one of the many short necked species). the two most common shortnecks ive seen around are kreffts and murrays. shortnecks are generally omnivores whilst longnecks seem more carnivorous, so the diets are a bit different (though as juvies they often dont eat much vegetation, regardless of species)

they NEED a basking light; without one, they usually wont come out to bask, so can be prone to lots of problems such as fungal infections on the shell because they constantly remain wet. the also need a decent UVB bulb or tube. My boy currently has a compact repti-glo 10.0 UVB bulb.

they can be kept in a tank as adults.. but prefferential to keep them in an outdoor pond type enclosure; they get natural light and more space.. just as a note, if you are going to keep it in a tank try to get a male (though cant sex hatchlings that i know of) as they stay smaller.

for my 2.5 year old boy, he's in a 4x2x2 foot tank that is full to the brim with water; i built an above-tank basking area for him, so that he has more space to swim. When I can, he will be going outside into a large stock-tank. He has a 300W stainless steel heater with a heater guard (he's smashed a glass heater when he was smaller, so could quite easily do it again now that he's bigger) that keeps the tank at about 23-24 degrees. he gets a lot of live aquatic plants to eat, freshwater shrimp and guppies, and occasionally reptomin pellets and the frozen turtle blocks (though I try to keep his diet as natural as possible) will post some pics soon if you'd like

 

[first_time_owner]

would it be ok to keep an adult in a tank then cos i have snakes at mums and she only wants me to have snakes and my dad likes them but we have a rottie x german shepard so i dont think my turtl would last very long outside
how much did that set up cos?

 

[jakethesnake]

Hey there, if you're worried about their size, i'd definately go for a long necked turtle. They still get pretty big, but they grow a lot slower. You wont need a basking light as long as you keep the water above 20 degrees. And you will DEFINATELY need a filter, they are very messy...They will also need a source of UV, via either a fluorescent light or take them outside for ten minutes per day.

 

[first_time_owner]

how big would the tank have to be for an adult?

 

[Pythonking]

they NEED a basking light; without one, they usually wont come out to bask, so can be prone to lots of problems such as fungal infections on the shell because they constantly remain wet. the also need a decent UVB bulb or tube. My boy currently has a compact repti-glo 10.0 UVB bulb.

what temps are advisable for the basking area? around my dock area is showing around 29 degrees and the water temp is 25 degrees at the moment don't have turtles in there yet so haven't been able to observe there behaviour and frorm what i understand young turtles tend to stay mostly in the water??

 

[Kitah]

for my setup.. lesse..

- Above tank basking area; would have cost me about $20 for the timber, about $30 for the pebbles used on the basking platform and about $20 or something for the perspex for the basking dock.

- UVB bulb was $47.50 or something for i think it was 23W bulb, is a repti-glo 10.0UVB bulb

- Use a normal light bulb as the basking light to provide heat

- Water heater cost me about $25 i think it was and an extra $8 for the heater guard

- Tank I got REALLY cheap off my grandparents (least i thought so) came with sump filter, media, stand, 4x2x2 foot tank with 10mm glass and a 4ft long twin light hood for $150. look around for a good deal, just make sure you get a BIG tank if it will live in there permanently...

- Filter cost me about $120, then I spend about $15 every 2 months to replace the filter sponges and carbon. bio media does not need to replaced for a few years.

personally, I would not use fake (plastic or silk) plants in my boys tank, because he KNOWS plants are food and would try to eat anything. also, i would not put rocks/pebbles in the tank that are the size of his head or smaller, as he would swallow them, which could have really bad consequences..

Also just as a note.. you could still get an outdoor enclosure; what I plan on doing is an above-ground large stock tank, and build a type of "cage" around it. I drew a pic of it once before.. will post that too


edit: pics..

first is a plan of what i eventually plan to do with turts enclosure outside. large stock tank with a platform built around the top, and a "cage" around it, so nothing can get in and turt cant get out


second is a pic of the above tank basking area, with the front flap down


third is a pic of turts tank soon after he went in it (hadnt done much in the way of in-tank things such as plants and rocks etc)


4th pic is a picture taken while making the basking platform, by siliconing river rocks to the perspex (perspex was bent for the ramp by using a heat gun)


5th pic is turts old tank, a 4foot x 18 inch by 15 inch tank, when he was a hatchy/juvie


if you want pics of my actual boy, just put a search in or check my profile, theres plenty of pics of him

 

[aussie1]

Long necks are far more placid and less agressive.

I have found if you mix the 2 in a confined space like a tank the short necks end up nipping at the longnecks feet and tails.

But thats just my experience

 

[first_time_owner]

thanks xshodowx, what dimensions would a tank have to be for an adult?

 

[Kitah]

forgot to mention..

my kreffts boy is extremely placid. as a hatchy soon out of the egg he would come straight up to me, rest on my hand if i put it in the water, and i can hand feed him. Now, after just over 2.5 years he's grown a lot, is still placid, has NEVER even tried to bite, can handle him quite easily, he isn't shy, can still feed him by hand (but if he misses the food and gets you.. it hurts.. lol) now, as he's bigger, his claws can actually do damage as theyre very sharp though..

the wild murrays in our dam (in brisbane) are also placid; if you catch one (have done so a few times, if for example i thought one was injured, or just to check them) they have never tried to bite, and they come over to the bank and will exit the water to take food from you.

I have an aunt who has a longneck (would be about 9 months old now) who is also friendly, takes food from teh hand and will swim up to you.

so from my experience.. both my kreffts and my aunts longneck, they seem very similar in personality. but every animal is an individual, and there may be a lot of variation.



edit: on some turtle forums they recommend 10gallons per inch of the turtles carapace length... i would say, depending on the adults size (factors such as gender (females are larger) and species would affect this) but i'd say an abosolute minimum of 4x2x2 feet. preferably as large as you can get it...

 

[hawkesbury reptiles]

I prefer the short necks...I have both types in my pond as adults and the short necks just have more brains than the longnecks....I have never had any of my short necks grab my finger because they thought it was food where the long necks won't even see the food and just chase your hand up and down...and their 'dumb' look........oh dear....I guess its personal preference.....,.

The short necks have even learn't to splash their front feet to get my attention and then stop doing it when they see me come over....a bit smarter than your average long neck.

 

[first_time_owner]

i dont know i think i like the longnecks better theyre pretty cute cos they re so dumb, like a dumb dog is cuter than a smart on IMO
so what dimensions for a tank for an adult?

 

[Noongato]

I want a saw-shelled, they look evil. Ayone know temperment on them?

 

[first_time_owner]

so dus anyone know the dimensions?

 

[Kitah]

as i said before, personally i would NOT get a tank any smaller than 4x2x2 for an adult turtle, depending on adult size (some species get larger than others, and females are generally larger than males)

also for basking temp, i usually try to keep mine about 30-32. if its not warm enough (i.e. not a large enough difference between water temp and basking temp) the turtles often wont bask.

edit: and also as i said before.. a lot of turtle forums use a "rule" which is 10 gallons of WATER in the tank for every inch of carapace (shell) length. so if you have a turtle with a shell length of 2 inches, it would need a tank with a minimum of 20gallons of water

 

[first_time_owner]

thanks xshadowx would i be able to put a hatchie in a tank that size? do i just use a normal light as the heat source?

 

[Kitah]

I use a normal light bulb for the heat source, yes. just play around until you get the basking area to around 30-32 degrees, and make sure the light isnt too close (if i was a turtle, wouldnt want to be blinded)

hatchies in the wild live in dams, lakes, rivers, creeks etc; they can swim beautifully, so you could put a hatchy in a tank that size. just remember, the more water the better!