Reptile & Amphibian Forums

hi finally i could post a picure of my turtle now i will be posting more but does she/he look healthy to u?

ok well here is a picture of the tail....its not that clear but you determine if it is male or female?? o and i got him/her about a year ago and he/she was 4in. so how old do u think she could be now?

and here is another picture of the bottom of her shell for the age...

Looks like a male Three-toed box turtle. It is impossible to guess his age from the pictures, but he looks to be close to full size so I will venture a guess and say around 8 years old. Age in turtles don't really matter because they are very long lived and he should live a long time no matter his age right now.

He looks healthy from just looking at the first picture, but really only you can tell for sure. Does he eat a good diet suitable for a box turtle? Does he have a good weight? Is his skin in good condition? Does he have clear, bright eyes? Does he have firm, dark feces? If you have any doubts about his health, please take him to a vet for a check up.
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Tess
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The tail looks like a boy but there is a point I'd like to make in that boxies in general seem to be tough to sex even as adults without other individuals to compare them to. This seems even more so in the case of the 3-toed. (I do think that guy is a boy though)
Ed

Hmmmm. That looks like a male with female color. Thats weird.

It's hard to determine if the turtle is healthy from a photo but it appears active which is always good. You should ask yourself a series of questions to determine it's state of health.

Are the eyes clear?
Is the turtle feeding regularly (every 2-3 days)
Is the turtle pooping regularly (every week or so)
Is the turtle active in the morning?

You should say yes to all of these. Activity may vary from day to day or turtle to turtle.

Your turtle appears to be a male three-toe box turtle.

Hope this helps.

Paul

thanks!! well i got him from a petstore which was really stupid and the guy told me that HE was a SHE but now i know not to trust the petstore again...he doesnt seem to be eating really well and for asll i know i think he was hibernating as well he eats a little but not much...he trys to hide a lot but usually in the early afternoon he is up in his waterdish or basking in the light...and he is fairly heavy too with a healthy shell

The person at the pet store is right, its a female.

ok now im confused is it male or female and how old?

Most responders seem to agree that it is probably a male. 3 toeds are difficult to sex, from what I have understood, so really the true test will be observing its activities when it gets to be breeding age.
As has been stated on previous occasions, it is not possible to determine age accurately unless one can find out from the breeder when the particular turtle hatched. The best anyone here can provide is an educated guess, and that has already been done.
As for gender, you may just have to wait and see.