I've got two very happy mud turtles, inherited not long ago from a kid relative who couldn't keep them well enough. I have pampered them a little and they have been very happy.

The thing is, sometimes it seems like they are a bit too active. One of them has the habit of pacing around the cage, rummaging through the substrate and pushing against the glass. Sometimes it pushes along the side with its claw and sometimes it even tries to climb up. Other times they chase each other around the cage... sometimes leading to the subject of my next question:

As best I can tell, they are both males... and I can be even more sure that they share their gender. However, they still chase each other around and sometimes latch on to one another in what I can only assume is a mating attempt.

Is all this activity normal... the pacing, or the mating? I have considered several possibilites: gender, cage-size, (they are small but their tank is not particularly huge), seasonal activity, and lack of hiding place. They have a great basking platform and love to huddle down underneath it in the water, but there are no hidey-holes exactly.

I mean, should I take them outside and let 'em run it off, or something?

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