Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I came across 2 baby turtles (I'm pretty sure they are Eastern box turtles) that were dumped off with a petstore and the owner disappeared. The smaller one is 1 1/2 inches and the larger one is 2 inches now, but they have grown some in the month i've had them. I've been doing strenuous research on them and want to give them the best life I can, but I am not sure if I am giving them everything so they live a healthy and long life. I live on the outskirts of the Olympics in the mountains so an outside enclosure is out of the question because it is way too cold except for August. I've read about replicating a forest ground type terrarium with 60-80% humidity and a shallow pond for bathing/defecating and a Reptisun 5.0 UVB lighting and basking temps in one corner and hiding places and deep substrate for burrowing. I've been feeding them smaller crickets and mealworms, greens (romaine, red leaf/green leaf, kale, frozen mixed veggies chopped),banana (just to see if they would eat) and softened box turtle dry formula, but they take to the mealworms and crickets the most. At first, they ate great (5-8 mealworms/ 3-4 crickets daily and greens if a critter was wrapped in it) I think, but recently all they want to do is sleep and the little one's eating habits have diminished almost entirely. She chomps a head for a few seconds or half a worm(kills it entirely) then spits it out. I'm worried about her because it's been a week. I messed up at first because I replicated their set up from what a guy in the shop told me and I didn't have internet at that time and a book from 1980 and it was wrong so their eyes swelled shut and stopped eating because of dryness and the larger one's skin started peeling. I gave them oral antibiotics for an eye infection and increase their tank temp to 85-90 degrees(vet said to do so) and they became more active and eating but I don't think it is helping the overall situation because they're going downhill again. I am setting up another tank without paper towels and a new light/heat source because they were too dry. I'd like to know anything and everything- such as what substrate/plants/setting is best- to make sure I am doing it right so I don't lose them. Any advice is greatly appreciated.

Austins Turtle Page.com...look for Dawn, she's like the box turtle guru.Thou I'm sure there's a few gurus here too. But that's ya best bet for quick responses

Thank you. I've been there before but I am going there again now with a fine tooth comb for more info.

This is what I keep my hatchlings in. I have a 75 gal tank, which I make into a vivarium. You have to mimic the forest floor. I use a mix of peat moss, soil and something called forest floor by zoo med. on top of that I put a lot of leaf litter and moss. I put lots of plants to hold the humidity. and a hide and shallow water dish. On top I put a heat emitter on one side...100 wt. pushed through a hole in the screen top. Temp. stays in the high 80's. On the other side I put a long tube UVB 10.0 over a screen to filter out the light. On this side the temp. is in the high 70. These babies would never be seen in the wild. They stay under the leaf litter and eat whatever little bug they find there.
Go to TurtleTails.com and he has plenty of pictures of his set ups for hatchlings and other boxies.

I was wondering what types of plants you have inside your vivarium because I am hesitant of using any of the plants in and around my home (my mother's boyfriend is into landscaping and our home is practically a jungle and nursery with everything) because I don't know enough about them and I am getting different answers everywhere, such as fern. I don't want to risk them trying something that is unhealthy. I might also want to go purchase something because I am unsure if some plants around here have been contaminated with fertizers and/or miracle grow type things. There are also unused bags of top soil and somthing called soil pep (replacement for sphagnum peat moss) here - are they good for turtles or is there something else better. Our ground is frozen with snow spots still so it needs to be something purchasable. I am going to look into the zoomed forest floor. Thank you

Here is a good site with a list of plants:

http://www.anapsid.org/resources/edible.html

I just plant some strawberry plants (they spread) Creeping Jenny, a ground cover, small Rose of Sharon (I have a tree and the seeds fall ...I pick them and save them for winter planting indoors) Also get a bag of bird seed and just sprinkle it in the viv and you should see sprouts in a few days. I also get Spring Mix seeds and plant them.
The little guys will nibble now and then but for the most part, they just like live things when they are small. After two or three years, they go outside. Just recently got back into boxies after my kids all grew up and I have the time now. I was mostly into water turtles.
Please look at this site....you will love the pictures and there is a world of information too.

http://turtle_tails.tripod.com/raisingbabyturtles/raisingbabyturtles.htm

It's my favorite site for boxies.
Good luck.
Terry

He also mentioned something about using a charcoal base with rocks or something underneath the soil substrate so the substrate does not become too wet over time and mold.

I just noticed this on your first post. Boxies dig under all the time, and this would be bad for them. Also you don't need to water the plants so much that the bottom is muddy. Water the plants every mist with a hand sprayer...warm water..once a day.

I'm not doing the charcoal idea because I don't know anything about it - it was just an idea my mom's boyfriend made but I won't do anything to jeopardize their survival rate. He mentioned the risk of mold growing rapidly and that plants need more than just a misting and he doesn't want to drown the tank so to speak, but we're brainstorming now. He's actually quite creative.

Check out my online book chapter on raising babies-www.boxturtlesite.info/bred.html
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Tess Cook
www.boxturtlesite.info

Pure peat moss is essentially sterile, and has antibacterial properties. I keep my young turtles on moist peat. Note that peat is initially hard to wet, but holds moisture very well once moistened. The turtles are in or right on top of the peat, where the humidity is always high even if the rest of the room is dry. I also give them a clean water dish for soaking and drinking. I do keep a plant or two witht them, but the plants are potted and the pots partially sunk into the peat.
Try live earthworms if you can get them!! They usually love earthworms (and slugs too!).

hii...3 dayz ago ibought a baby turtle frm a vendor-here in pakistan thats all u get here..bt without any research or nething...i bought it n also its food...da food is a product frm a chinese company calld cleverfish>_>
n it says that its a floating type stick food....suitable for all turtle types..baby is slightly greenish-brownish...in length he must b around 3 to 4inches...haz a very short tail...as compared to the pics of other turtles ive seen on da web.....it also haz a slight black lining in da middle ov his shell....n i wud say he haz orange cheeks=S bt doesnt luk like a red slider at all from da pics that ive seen...n i suppose he doesnt have webbed feet..i can c claws n he even climbed out of a shoe box after many tries...problem is since da day ive bought him he hasnt takin a single bite of his food..which is 3 dayz....icant afford a aquarium or special tank...n i cant let him go cuz he wont survive an hour outside...icant return him cuz even dere he'l die.
.m realy worried for him...n i want him to survive...he can swim quiet well...hes good on land too...i just cant figure out wut is his type n wut i need to do n hw ican treat him better...btw he he does pee or wutevr ive seen it many times when ive held him...so i NEED URGENT HELPPP!!!!
n how can i send u its pics??
cuz idun blog...wud u b able to access it thru facebook??
m sorry ima a total noob!!
bt HELP!!! =;(

alright...wrong observation...he haz totaly webbed feet...with claws on hands and legs...orange cheeks..like he is blushing...bt hez haznt eatin nething for whole 3 dayz...plz hurry...ineed to show u da pix bt how?????