There are still a few states that allow possession with a permit. The permits are relatively easy to obtain. I kept wild caught turtles in outdoor pens when I was a kid. I had buried cattle stock tanks filled with a small amount of mud, topped with water, and planted with plants from the bog behind my neighborhood where I found the turtles. I would do monthly water changes with well water. I kept those turtle for a few years, then let them go where I caught them.



Now, I have raised captive bred babies. I keep them in plastic shoeboxes with about two inches of dechlorinated/aged tapwater. I do not filter the water, as they seem to not like movement (my opinion). I change it as needed. I provide lots of hidey spots, as they start out very shy. I feed only live prey, as they won't really take commercial stuff for me. I offer greens and live plants to nibble on (they hardly ever do), UVA/UVB lighting, and use pieces of terra cotta pots for a land area.



When they approach adult size, I place them in an outdoor pond. It's one of those preformed hard plastic jobs. It has a layer of sand with some organic debris on the bottom, and is full of plants, and a few large pieces of driftwood. They can crawl out onto a small land area of sand and topsoil.



I don't heat my indoor tanks, and they never go above 75 degrees F. If they do heat up, my turtles frantically try to get out. Also, if it's above 80 outside, I don't see my outdoor turtles. They bury in the mud around the base of the plants. They seem to like it "cool".



What kinds of problems have you had? Do they not eat, constantly try to escape, act sickly, die? This might help us help you help your turtles.

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