Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Hey, I'm new here and I have a quick question! I have a RES, a mississippi map, and a river cooter (all males, all best friends)and I'm getting a Southern painted and maybe another turtle. First of all, what would be a generally small turtle that looks a lot different than my other turtles??? I just want one mainly that looks differently. And, could they all fit in a 90 gallon tank?? Thanks!!

J.L.

You have too many turtles for a 90 gallon tank already. The rule of thumb is an inch of turtle per ten gallons of water. You probably have only 70 gallons of water or so in a 90 gallon tank, and even one of those turtles could reach 7-9 inches, so it is only big enough for one adult slider.
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You are definately going to need a large pond of some sort.

Do I really have too many turtles in there? All I have is a RES, a mississippi map, and a river cooter. All my turtles are small, I make sure of that before I buy them. I don't like the really big turtles. My RES is almost full grown and he's still small. As babies, they all lived together in a 20 gallon and got along fine. Are you sure?

J.L.

RES get about at least 10 inches. and as a normal standard, with that being said... the fullgrown RES alone needs at least 100 grallones (being an inch of turtle per 10 gallons). and if you have more than that RES turtle in the tank, you will definitely need a larger area to keep them in, whether it be a larger tank or a pond.
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~ Evie

Pets:
0.1.0 German Shepherd {Dusty}
0.1.0 German Shepherd/Collie mix {Shadoe}
0.0.2 RES turtles {Booger and Snot}
1.0.0 African Clawed Frog {Bingo}
0.0.1 Snail {Gary}

gallons*

sorry... didnt even realize i had mis-spelled it!
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~ Evie

Pets:
0.1.0 German Shepherd {Dusty}
0.1.0 German Shepherd/Collie mix {Shadoe}
0.0.2 RES turtles {Booger and Snot}
1.0.0 African Clawed Frog {Bingo}
0.0.1 Snail {Gary}

yes, it's really too small. Just because they all "fit" in there and get along doesn't mean they are happy. They are aquatic turtles and in the wild they are not just hanging out in mud puddles. Get them a bigger tank, seperate tanks or a pond. And also, how do you know your RES is full grown and how big is he? Even so, bigger tank, more water is needed. Work on setting these three up right before you get another.
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~walnut~
Turtle Pics
1 Dog- Mollianna Mae
1 Cat- Macey Montana
2 Red Eared Sliders- Gator and No-No
2 Beta- Swamp and Swims
4 Fish- One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue Fish

Ok, I've had my RES for quite some time. He is only about 4-5 in. long. He was a really small baby when I got him. He is really not that active, either. He mostly hangs out on the piece of driftwood. And, also, we have this guy come in once in a while to our house and check up on our pets and help keep the cages nice and clean. He said that it would be a fine size cage and he's had a good look at all my guys. I know you're thinking they're these big turtles, I've had big turtles, these are not big turtles. I just can't understand why they can't all fit in that cage. I've had them all in a 20 gallon and they still had PLENTY of room to move. So why canb't they fit in that big cage???? And, what kind of cage could they fit in???

J.L.

just cause they fit doesn't mean that's enough room. I can "fit" in a plastic crate...doesn't mean i'm happy there now does it? a 20L just isn't big enough for 3 turts...especially if one is a slider. There is a chance your turt isn't full grown yet but even if he is....do you want him to be unhappy? You said he just sits there...what better proof do you need?
Just get a bigger tank....for every inch of turtle you need TEN gallons of water...so technically your 5 inch slider should be in at least a 55 gallon tank-alone. I don't think anyone here will disagree about the fact that their current tank is too small so just buck up and get a bigger one.
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~walnut~
Turtle Pics
1 Dog- Mollianna Mae
1 Cat- Macey Montana
2 Red Eared Sliders- Gator and No-No
2 Beta- Swamp and Swims
4 Fish- One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue Fish

I don't want to be a dink here,but I think the origonal poster may have trouble understanding what we are tellingher, which is that she needs a MUCH bigger tank.
WHY you ask yourself?
Because 4 turtles in a little tank makes for one big turtle toilet.Could I exist in a landfill? Probobly.Would I like it?Probobly not.Even if you clean the tank every day, then that is really bad for the turtles because it kills off all the good bacteria that keeps the tank healthy.

Also, could I live permanently in my dorm room with 3 other people? Yes.WOuld I enjoy it? No. Especially if it was in a landfill.This is what you are doing to your turtles.If your RES is 4-5 inches long, there is no way it is full grown. Give us a shout out in 3 years and let us know how big he is.They get up to 10-12 inches as full grown adults.

In most cases, owning a pet is a choice.If you have 3 turtles, it is your responsibility to make sure their needs are met.That means investing in the proper size equipment to care for them and doing your homework as to what that entails. Yes, they are cute to look at and fun to watch, but cheap and low maintainance they are not.
Austin's turtle page and Kingsnake have pretty good care sheets that will confirm this is not a conspiracy theory against you getting another turtle, as they were started years before you got them.
Check out other set ups to see what other people have and maybe it will give you some good ideas.Good luck with your turtles, and check out the care sheets.
...Anne
1 RES JFK
1 Ankle biter 18 months

very well put kerry04... and i think most (probably all) would agree full-heartedly. definitely need to think about these kind of things before jumping up and getting yet ANOTHER ONE! RES are NOT fullgrown at that size... nore are they NEAR fullgrown... i would say your RES is about half full grown. also, i dont believe anyone mentioned that after these turtles do become larger, they will not only need a larger space, but it will show in their actions. they will start to attack each other because they are very territorial, and since they 'need' more space to have for themselves... they will definitely start to tear into each other... then what will you do? just something to think about!
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~ Evie

Pets:
0.1.0 German Shepherd {Dusty}
0.1.0 German Shepherd/Collie mix {Shadoe}
0.0.2 RES turtles {Booger and Snot}
1.0.0 African Clawed Frog {Bingo}
0.0.1 Snail {Gary}

Thank you to those who said that nicely!! And to the others, for people to listen to you, you need to be nice and understanding!! Anyway, the cages at the petstores are labled wrong, I think. The 90 gallon is close to the size of my refrigerator. So, in my opinion, I think that's a fine size. I'll try to post a picture of my cage when I get it. Even the 75 gallon seems really big for a 75 gallon. Thanks to you who were nice to me!!

J.L.

Hi,

I'm not sure if anyone else mentioned this (I skimmed rather quickly) but have you considered big plastic tubs? I know theyr'e not pretty to look at, but they are efficient, won't crack easily, and insanely cheaper than a glass tank of the same size. Of course, you'd need to separate the turtles cuz I think they biggest they go for is around 60 gallons or so...mebbe. I'm using the largest one I bought from LOWES right now for my turtles outside.

Oh, and they do bulge out a bit after you fill with a lotta water so you gotta wedge them somehow.

Johnny

Thank you so much for that very nice answer! You see how nice he was, everbody? I'll probably try that! Thank you!

J.L.

just because someone is telling you what you are doing wrong, doesnt mean they arent being nice. its called constructive criticism. they are only concerned with the well-being of your turtles. they dont want you to make another mistake by buying another turtle and therefore making all of your turltes more cramped and unhappy. consider a turtle pond. they can be beautiful and peaceful and could more easily house all of your turtles humanely.

Just a question.Do you have your tank filled to the top with water for these guys?Do you have a pic of their tank?
Thanks.
...Anne
1 RES JFK (living alone in a 75 gallon tank)
1 anklebiter 18 months

Well, yes there are nice ways of saying constructive cristicism. And about my cage, it has it's water filled pretty high up, but not too high. They do have alot of swimming space. And a place to get out of the water. Sorry, I don't have a camera that can post pics.

J.L.