Does any one know what the best begginer box turtle is? It has to be able to live in a 50 gallon cage all its life, and it has to cost less than a small fortune. (By the way, I'm not jumping into this on a whim, and watever you say, I'll research it.) Thnx for your input.
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best begginer box turt
boprobe
Dec 10, 2003 03:24 PM
Replies (5)
StephF
Dec 10, 2003 04:34 PM
A 50 gallon container is WAY too small for any box turtle to be kept in all of its life: a hatchling would do okay in something that size for a year or two, but eventually it would need more room.
To keep an adult box turtle in something that small would be downright cruel.
They need room to roam, and if thats the best you'll be able to do for space, I would urge you to find a more suitable pet.
Rouen
Dec 10, 2003 05:43 PM
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bloomindaedalus
Dec 10, 2003 10:20 PM
please don't try to restrict a box turtle to a small aquarium. they do very poorly even in large ones (125 gallons plus) The need room to roam, access to areas of differing humidity and tempoerature, and will likely be upset by the glass through which they cannot penetrate.
If you want to keep a box turtle indoors there are other options but you will always need lots of space.
spycspider
Dec 12, 2003 05:21 PM
Hey, doesn't most literature state that box turtles aren't for beginners? I've had several but then again, I've kept turtles for more than a decade already.
If you have to make a choice, I remember reading somewhere that eastern box do better in captivity than ornate (western) ones.
Johnny
PHBoxTurtle
Dec 16, 2003 12:00 PM
All it's life for a box turtle means 50 to 75 years or more! Do you really want to commit to a lifetime of caring for an indoor turtle? You would have to be very good about cleaning such a small space and the turtle would not be happy in a tank that small for very long! After so many years, a small fortune will be spent on replacing bedding, buying all it's live food, replacing old UVB lights, buying heat, etc, etc. If you are concerned about pen size and money then buy a reptile with a small home range (box turtles can roam and forage in a home range sevral acres big!) and short-lived, not one that lives as long as a human.
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