I have a hatchling mississippi mud turtle and he is extremely shy and he doesnt really like turtle pellets and only seems to want to eat ham and he also swims in to the glass all day long. I never see him bask. He is in a 55 gallon tank with a hatchling softshell who is about 3 in. I think the water temperature might be a problem though it is about 71 degrees. He has some cover in the shallow end but still seems scared all the time and swims into the glass.
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My turtle needs help!
iliketurtlesalot
Feb 03, 2004 03:23 PM
Replies (1)
mayday
Feb 03, 2004 05:06 PM
First raise the water temperature just a bit to around 75 to 78 degrees.
Then provide a few more hide areas like more plants and or driftwood.
STOP feeding HAM. Try something that is better for a mud turtle like some of the frozen fish foods.
Small mud/musk turtles LOVE things like squid, clams, bloodworms and krill. These are readily available at most decent aquarium stores. Other good items are pellets designed for cichlids.
Feed sparingly and keep the water clean.
As it grows you can feed other things like 'clean' feeder fish, etc.
If it is a hatchling it will soon calm down as long as it is treated gently and it is not getting bullied by the softshell.
