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Does anyone else turtles freak out when they are gettign soaked? I soak my three toed female(petry) about 1 a week and everytime i put her into the bucket she freaks out and spends the whole time trying to climb out the sides. I have tried everythign from adding a rock for her to climb up on to feel more secure to lowering the water level to get her used to it. She does't seem to like it. Its not that the water is too cold or too hot.

She also when she is in her tank or pen outside she will only soak in this certain dish, its a plant dish and is only about 1 1/2" high so it doesn't hold much water. Not enough to get a good soak in.

When i soak her how deep should the water be? I only make it about 2" deep. Thanks

2" is too deep.... your turtle is trying to swim, and most boxies really arent great swimmers. 1/2 to an inch of water is better.....

>>Does anyone else turtles freak out when they are gettign soaked? I soak my three toed female(petry) about 1 a week and everytime i put her into the bucket she freaks out and spends the whole time trying to climb out the sides. I have tried everythign from adding a rock for her to climb up on to feel more secure to lowering the water level to get her used to it. She does't seem to like it. Its not that the water is too cold or too hot.
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>>She also when she is in her tank or pen outside she will only soak in this certain dish, its a plant dish and is only about 1 1/2" high so it doesn't hold much water. Not enough to get a good soak in.
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>>When i soak her how deep should the water be? I only make it about 2" deep. Thanks
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Greg
http://greg978.tripod.com/

There's no need for an outdoor living turtle to be soaked regularly. As long as it has access to fresh water you are fine, it will take care of itself. Most likely it is just a bit scared of being moved into an open vulnerable spot like the soaking bin is.

Is this water dish you use the easiest one for it to get in and out of? Is it located somewhere that offers some cover and so might seem safer to sit in and enjoy? It could just be personal preference also.

Well she isn't outside yet, still too cold. Right now she is in her 40g tank.

So how much water should i be putting when i soak her? 1/2" seems kind of small. With the amount i add the water comes up to the bottom edge of her shell(jsut covers her legs). Is this too much? She has spots where she can get out of the water more since the bottom of the bucket is curved(the edge is deeper then the middle).

I have tried other water dishes in her tank but she wouldn't go into them and i was getting worried that she wasn't drinking. So i added the plant saucer back and she went right in. So 1 1/2" is deep enough?

In my sick tanks I don't have water dishes at all (only time I keep juvenile through adult boxies indoors). For them I soak them in lukewarm water that is almost as deep as their nostrils when they clam up. I also run water over them while filling the sink or bucket they will soak in. I leave them for 30 minutes in a quiet area (where nobody will walk to cause vibrations) and often with a towel over most of the bin so they can feel more secure.

Outdoors I provide one big water dish. My boxies frequently soak below water level in deep water, so I use big cement mixing tubs with concrete blocks for entrance steps. The steps can be big, I use one giant block for each tub. The boxies can sit on the block in shallow water, or can plop down into the deep part that is at least twice their shell height. I have never had a drowning, boxies are quite capable swimmers and provided there is a spot for them to climb out fairly easily they will do great with and seem to enjoy deep water.

Thanks, She is indoors right now becuase i didn't hibernate her.When i got her last spring she was not in good condition so i have been trying to get her health back.I also live in edmonton,alberta so it is just starting to warm up enough for her to go outside. Outside she has a paint tray for her dish that slants so it is deep on one end. So I guess we will see if she likes that this summer.

Here is another question, you said taht you fill the water jsut high enough so that when the close their shell its ok. Well my turtle has never gone into her shell. Even when i took her to the vet, he had never seen a turtle taht didn't freak out and clam up. Even when i cut her nails she will pul her lag away but never closes her shell.Is she just friendly,comfortable around people? Before i got her she had lived her whole life in a tiny tank, so maybe she is just used to people being around. Or could there be something wrong?

not sure why she doesn't close up.

Just soak her in water where she does not have to work hard to get her nose above water for breathing.

Thanks for all the help!

I have a little pond in my turtle enclosure instead of soaking them all of the time. I bought a new dish pan, and filled it up with rocks so that it slopes. That way, they have a shallow end where they are about ankle deep, and a deeper area where they can completely cover their shells. It's not huge, but they seem to love it. I use a little fish tank filter to help keep it clean, but it doesn't need too much upkeep. When it's nice out, I put them in a kiddy pool in the back yard full of water about 1 inch deep. They've got log to climb on and a box to hide in. They usually run around like it's the horse races.

The only time I've seen them freak out like you described is when I soak them in the bath tub.