Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Today, my son found a young Eastern Box Turtle floating in our swimming pool. I have him/her right now in the land area, in a samll shallow bowl with water, in our Red Eared Slider tank. What is a low cost indoor house that I can put together for this little one?

>>Today, my son found a young Eastern Box Turtle floating in our swimming pool. I have him/her right now in the land area, in a samll shallow bowl with water, in our Red Eared Slider tank. What is a low cost indoor house that I can put together for this little one?

First thing check the laws in your state, in some states it's not legal to keep an Eastern box for a pet.
I'm not sure I understand what you mean that it's in a small shallow bowl with water. Do you mean the turtle is sitting in water full time or do you mean the turtle is in the bowl and there is a separate bowl for it that has water in it?
Box turtles are basically land turtles that are more like tortoises, they live on land and then like to soak in water for only short periods of time. They can't be kept in water full time.

In general found box turtles are better off left in the wild but that always depends on what the situation is.

You can find a lot of info on how to set up housing for them through this link
Box Turtle

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PHRatz

Thanks for linking to my online book PHRatz!

Her words are correct-check your state laws-for example, in Indiana people cannot remove Eastern box turtles from the wild. There's a very good reason for it--box turtles are becoming scarce due to habitat loss, pollution and over-collection. If you live near woods (like I do- I see them occasionally and what a thrill that is!) you can release the turtle back into the woods a few hundred feet from any roads or houses, preferabbly in a damp ravine. Baby turtles have a very strong instinct for survival but they can't avoid our "traps". Saving it from the pool was fortunate!

If you can legally keep it- provide it a good home. A suitable indoor home for a hatchling box turtle is a medium size tank with lots of moist sphagnum moss, UVA and UVB lights and incandscent light for warmth. Buy a good digital thermometer, feed it a variety of live insects, and a little later on start it on plant foods. Buy reptile vitamins and a good book about them. There is no such thing as an inexpensive stater home That way produces sickly, deformed and unhappy turtles. Good luck!
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Tess
Kingsnake.com Forum Host

>>Thanks for linking to my online book PHRatz!

You're welcome! It's been very helpful to many people for many years. Thanks for creating it.
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PHRatz