Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Hi all,

I recently got a florida softshell hatchling and I would like to set him up in an environment that suits him. Right now I have him in a 10 gallon tank with some guppies, but I would like to give him his own setup (this tank is setup for fish). I also have a 55 gallon tank but I have a small RES and a medium sized river slider and the water in there is pretty deep. Any suggestions or maybe links to sites with pictures of aquariums setup for softies?

Thanks!
Mario

would this be another tank seperate from the RES and river slider? The biggest problem when mixing a RES/River slider and pig-nosed softshell (which the fl softshell is) is if the other turtles are bigger, they see the pig-nose as a source of food...so you may see the other turtles snapping at it. Long term it's not a good idea to mix them. I have 2 tank setups that work well for softies. One would be to take a flower pot and cut an archway in the top of the pot...around the brim...then turn it upside down (so he has a hiding place to get into), then put a saucer on the top to hold some rocks to give your softy a place to rest. In natural habitats, they lay close to the surface under a rock or something so they can stick their neck up and breathe easier without having to move as much. Occasionally they'll get up on the bank to bask out in the sunlight, but very rarely. The other method would to get a piece of plastic cut to the inside dimensions of the tank, and take some aquairum sealant and glue it to the inside of the tank, along with another piece pointing upwards so that it will hold the sand. Fill the tank up to give enough water so the entire turtle can be submerged...then place a small rock to give the turtle a place to get out of the water. Note: Do not use anything except aquarium sealant (available at home depot for about $3 vs $10 at a pet store), because it will kill your turtle. I have used both of these, both suggestions were given to me by blisterburg. I prefer the one with the plastic simply for the reason in my smaller tank it gives a little more room for him to swim around, although it negates his hiding space. When I get my bigger 75 gallon tank in the summer i'll probably go to the flower pot one again.

If you have a fully submerged tank, i.e. no shallow or basking area, that will work for your turtle but it will really stress him out. They can breathe through their skin (the "shell), but not as well as they can through their nose. Therefore you may think the turtle is having fun, but in reality it's almost struggling to breathe when it's getting up to the surface. It's your choice. -Chris

And yes, softy's do need the 5.0 UVB light just like your RES does.

This is just a repost of what I said below.

I can only relate my own experience, but here is what I have found to be successful. I bought a hatchling florida softshell and kept it for four years. When I finally ran out of room for it, it was 18 inches long and was getting too big for the 120 gallon tank I had it in. Originally, as a hatchling it was kept in a 20 gallon long aquarium, with a sand substrate, a weathered, smooth log for a basking area, water temps of approx 78 degrees and a basking spot in the upper 80's. Food was reptomin sticks, earthworms and small feeder fish. The same conditions were replicated in it's next 3 tanks, a 40 gallon, 75 gallon and lastly a 120 gallon. The only thing with the larger tanks I didn't use was sand. Too much of a hastle to keep clean. I was running two fluval 403's on the 120 gallon and doing large water changes weekly. Food was the same, pellets, large feeder fish, earthworms with the occasional pinky thrown in. She had a real personality, stood up on her hind legs in the tank looking for food. It was cute to see. I loved her to death but I just didn't have the room for a 400 gallon stock tank(which is what she needed) so I gave her to a friend who had one in his basement family room.(wives that will tolerate that are hard to find). Just remember, they're cute now, but if it's a female of any of the species they get very large, very quickly when maintained properly. If you don't have the space to house an adult you shouldn't get one. I was lucky that I had a friend who would take her.

I have a hatchling Texas Spiny in a 10 gallon as described by CRToon 83. I also put the other critters from my trip south in with him. A handul of mosquito fish and a small crawfish. The crawfish spends a lot of time hiding under the flower pot. When I put food in the tank he immediately apears and looks for it. The rivalry between this turtle and crawfish is very amusing. The turtle boldly goes after the crawfishes food, he is fearless. Once when I was feeding some meat from my finger tip, the turtle got my cuticle in his jaws. Bore down like a 2" long bulldog. I could hardly feel it, but that turtle wanted a piece of me.
Frome my experience, softys are not as aggresive predators as some other turtles. I have had small fish live with young softshells for months. One time I saw a shiner caught, quite accidently, as I was feeding. It was promptly torn apart and eaten, after being in the tank more than a year.