Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I, or actually my 7 yr old daughter, got a slider about 3 weeks ago. It doesnt seem to be eating much, if anything. I dont know if the water is too cold. I have a 25 watt night bulb and 25 watt day bulb (what the pet store recomended)But the water feels awfuly cold! I have tried pellets, crickets, sliced carrots, fruit,and earthworms. Im not sure of his age ( his shell is approximatly 3 1/2 to 4 inches wide). Any help would be appreciated...dont want to kill the poor little guy, or girl.(dont know whitch..lol)

PS) the tank is 20 gallon.

if the water is too cold, they will not eat...it will also sometimes cause them to want to hibernate...and since its not cold enough...they cant hibernate...so since its too cold to eat...and not cold enough to hibernate...this can cause them to get sick and die, make sure the water is around 78...when i first got my hatchlings...i knew nothing about them, 2 of them died because the water was too cold...another one was sick and not eating...i threw in a heater that made sure the water was always 82...it helped my turtle get better within 3-5 days...and it was eating...then afterwards i droped the temp to about 78...and as they grow the temp went a bit down...until i took out the heater, and now the coldest it gets is 72-74...i heard as long as it dosent get under 70, u should be fine....but for a baby...u should keep it around 78...good luck

Thanx so much! I appreciate your reply....and soo fast lol

Does it have a basking area? I would increase the heat bulb
to about a 60 watt and then check the temp on the basking area.
In case this is not familiar to you, a basking area is the
place where the turtle can get completely out of the water
and warm up. The heat light should be positioned above this
area far enough away to make it 85 degrees. I would also
purchase a larger enclosure. Huge rubbermaid containers are
great for turtles. In your 20 gallon, an increase in your heat
light will most likely warm the water also to the desired temp.
Make sure you check all temps involved, don't guess. Temps that
are too hot are just as bad as temps that are too cold. Also,
I do not recall you saying you had a UVB source?? This is
very critical to the well being of your turtle. Please do all
the research you can on your new pet. DO NOT count on employees
in the petshops. A lot of the time they give wrong information.
Oh, almost forgot, position your heat light over one side of
the enclosure that way the turtle can move from cooler to warmer
which is very important. For feeding, try Reptomin Floating
Food Sticks. If that does not work after adjusting temps, try
chicken flavored canned dog food just to start it eating. Once it begins eating it will start taking other foods.

Hope this helps and post again if you have more questions.

Linda

>>Does it have a basking area?

yes he /it does. BUT wont get up there AT ALL. He can...it has gradual steps. but just sits in 1 corner under water??
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Lori G. (New turtle owner)

>>Does it have a basking area? I would increase the heat bulb
>>to about a 60 watt and then check the temp on the basking area.
>>In case this is not familiar to you, a basking area is the
>>place where the turtle can get completely out of the water
>>and warm up. The heat light should be positioned above this
>>area far enough away to make it 85 degrees. I would also
>>purchase a larger enclosure. Huge rubbermaid containers are
>>great for turtles. In your 20 gallon, an increase in your heat
>>light will most likely warm the water also to the desired temp.
>>Make sure you check all temps involved, don't guess. Temps that
>>are too hot are just as bad as temps that are too cold. Also,
>>I do not recall you saying you had a UVB source?? This is
>>very critical to the well being of your turtle. Please do all
>>the research you can on your new pet. DO NOT count on employees
>>in the petshops. A lot of the time they give wrong information.
>>Oh, almost forgot, position your heat light over one side of
>>the enclosure that way the turtle can move from cooler to warmer
>>which is very important. For feeding, try Reptomin Floating
>>Food Sticks. If that does not work after adjusting temps, try
>> chicken flavored canned dog food just to start it eating. Once it begins eating it will start taking other foods.
>>
>>Hope this helps and post again if you have more questions.
>>
>>Linda

OH and thanx!!!
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Lori G. (New turtle owner)