Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I have 2 RES's. Both are about 2.5". Guava is a boy because he does the courtship dance whenever the 2 turtles face each other and make eye contact for a couple of seconds. I'm not sure of Kiwi's sex, but its front claws are just as long, if not longer, than Guava's (see 1st picture). I also caught Kiwi showing great interest in Guava's rear end (see second picture). Does that mean Kiwi might be a boy too?

Another question is regarding their carapace growth. Kiwi grows faster but has a nice smooth carapace. On the other hand, Guava grows slower yet shows slight "bumpiness" in his carapace that almost look like pyramiding. I would assume that slower growth would mean smoother carapace. I'm perplexed... Does anyone have an explanation?

Hope you enjoy the pictures. I certainly enjoyed taking pictures of them!

Although they are still pretty young, I believe Kiwi is a male
due to his tail length. Don't be so sure your other is a
male because he does the dance. My females do it. Can you get
a picture of the others rear end (that sounds funny)

As far as growing, generally if they are growing too fast
the shell will get lumpy. If you notice this is happening just
maybe cut back and try adding some greens and squash. If you
cut the squash in very thin slices they can bite off small
sections.

Hope this helps.
Linda

What does lumpy mean? I know that sounds like a stupid question, I'm just curious. Growth is a concern of mine since I've gotten my turtle and I look at my guy several times a week to make sure nothing odd is occuring.

>>As far as growing, generally if they are growing too fast
>>the shell will get lumpy. If you notice this is happening just
>>maybe cut back and try adding some greens and squash. If you
>>cut the squash in very thin slices they can bite off small
>>sections.
>>
>>Hope this helps.
>>Linda

By "rear end" do you mean the opening on the underside of the tail?

Right now I'm feeding them 6 Reptomin baby pellets every other day and veggies on the in between days. Seems like they still grow pretty fast. I might go down to 2 Reptomin feedings every week. Do I need to provide them veggies every day on the off days or is it ok for them to go without food on some days?

Thanks for your input!

After mine turned 1 I started feeding them every other day.
By what you described it doesn't sound like you are over feeding
them. I would rotate what you give them at each feeding.
Like pellets one day and then maybe give some greens, like
romaine and some veggies cut up very small. Also, see if
you can find Anarcharis in some of your larger petshops. Mine
love this stuff. It is a water plant.

See if you can get a picture of the tail end from the bottom
of the turtle if possible. Then I can be pretty sure when
I make my observation.

Hope this helps
Linda

So does your feeding scheme look something like this:

Day 1: pellets
Day 2: no food
Day 3: veggies
Day 4: no food
Day 5: pellets
etc.

I'll post the tail pictures as a new post today!

Thanks.

This is the routine but I mix it up with different kinds of
protein. Like pellets or thawed, frozen shrimp, soaked dry
cat food (nice and soft), etc. I will probably say though
that the Reptomin is their staple diet. I do not feed any
live food like fish and such. Your hatchlings appetiite will
change as they grow. For instance, my 2 RES would eat nothing
but Reptomin for quite some time. At about 3 years of age
they starting eating greens, squash, and many types of fruit.
My Pained turtle, however, prefer more meat products than
veggies and stuff. To be completely honest, my RES will eat
just about anything that will fit in their mouths now
They are 4 years old.

Your babies look great! They are lucky to have you!

Linda

So far I've only been feeding them pellets and a wide variety of veggies. For some reason they don't dislike veggies. It might be because I started feeding them veggies when they were small (1 inch big).

I do dote on them. So much so that my fiance is a little jealous because I don't write him love letters but keep a "turtle journal" that documents their length, weight and funny moments...

Again, thanks for the info!

I have 2 RES, 2 Painted turtles, 1 Redfoot tortoise and 2
Iguanas. Mine gets a little jealous too!

Linda