Reptile & Amphibian Forums

First of all, thank you all for such a friendly and informative site!!!

Had about 100 questions, most of which have been answered by reading the archived forums (thank you!!!)Rescued 3 hatchlings in October 2004!

1. A sign of overfeeding/overprotein is a "pyramid" shell? If my RES's are 2 inches long, how tall should the shell protrude?

2. How does one get ahold of edible waterplants (anachris, duckweed, waterlettuce, etc.)? Where are they sold? I'm in SF, CA.

3. There are many theories about giving in to begging turtles. If I give veggies as a treat to them, do I feed inside or outside the tank? Currently they are being weaned off of a protein rich diet and are slowly taking to the reptomin. Messy!

4. How large of a tank do you recommend for 3 RES's. They're babies now, but I don't want to stunt their growth. Can 3 live together peacefully?

5. Do they change color/shading frequently or have frequent growth spurts? I thought I had them named, then they "pulled a fast one" on me. Should I just rely on the patterns of their underbelly?

BTW, it took me 5 1/2 months to name them: Seaweed, Olive and Pickle (the troublemaker)

Sorry this is so long! You all rock!

Jeanette

1. A healthy turtle should have a smooth even shell. If there is a ridge along the middle of it then your turtles are getting too much protien. People run into this problem most often when they are mislead into believing they need to feed goldfish to their turtles.

2. You can buy most aquatic plants at any pet store that sells fish. For some of the harder to find plants, try a store that caters specifically to tropical fish.

3. Unless you have a seperate tank for feeding then you should probably feed the veggies in the tank. Turtles need to be in the water to eat

4. What sex are your RES? If you have three females, boy you are in for some fun! Female RES can easily get 12inches long, while males stay a bit smaller. The general rule of thumb is 10gallons for each inch of shell. I would personally say i would go with a 125-150gallon tank when they are adults. Wether or not they will coexist is up to the turtles. The more space you give them the better your chances are that they will get along. Watch for aggression amoungst them and seperate them immediately if any occurs.

5. Im really not sure about the colors...i bet DsgnGirl will know
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0.1 Bearded dragon
0.1 mexican kingsnake
1.0.2 Leopard Gecko's
0.0.1 Rose Hair Tarantula
1.0 BTS
0.0.1 Reverse Okeetee Corn
0.1 Bullmastiff
4.1 Cats

On the coloring, once they lose their baby green shells they pretty much stay the same colors. My guys have looked the same for years, other than getting a bit bigger.

If you want to keep the 3 of them together you will need a large pond, at least out in CA you should be able to keep them outside year round once they get big. As Altered Mind said, they grow to the size of dinner plates!
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A mans got to do what a mans got to do. A woman has to do what he can't.

Mom to:

1 little boy born 7/19/04
2 male RES, born 1999
1 ribbon snake, age unknown
3 FBT, ages unknown
1 female bearded dragon, born 5/2002
1 male lab mix, born 5/24/03
1 female calico cat, born 6/7/04

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sig file edited 1/29/05 [phw]