Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I just got a red eared slider. It is about 4 inches long. I put her out in a pond in my backyard. I live in the bay area in california. Are there any special things i need for the pond? Its 3 feet deep in the center and has mud and dead plants at the bottom. I made a latter so she can get out. Do i need to set up a pump to circulate the water? Do i need to heat the water, or will she be fine? When i feed her, should i just put collard greens in the water or what? I got her from a crappy petstore and the people didn't speak english well. Thank you for your help!

u can buy regular turtle food from petstores for it...they eat small fish sometimes(mine does alittle) and idk bout rest for the pond setup

Feeder fish should be fed often. Turtles can't always catch healthy fish so you may need to kill some of the fish to feed your turtle. Get some anacharis or hornwort aquatic plants at a pet store and those should grow well outside. Feed the turtle a couple times a week. Not everyday. Cooked egg with the shell ground up in it is a good high calcium food too. Leafy greens like collard and mustard (no spinach) are good if you can't stay ahead with the aquatic plants. If you can have your turtle checked out by a qualified turtle vet. Since you got it "at a crappy" pet store (not unusual) the turtle could have some problems (respiratory infection, shell infection). If you visit this website it will tell you how to check if your turtle is sick, gives care info. and more diet suggestions. Beware, there is a lot of bad care info. on the net. It's great that you have a pond to keep it in.
Gulf Coast Turtle & Tortoise Society