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i have recently bought a painted turtle, and i have searched on the internet and found that the information upon the habitat my turlte needs is different to what the pet shop told me. does anyone know what habitat they need to live in and what they eat as he will not eat either
please help
thanks mel
>>i have recently bought a painted turtle, and i have searched on the internet and found that the information upon the habitat my turlte needs is different to what the pet shop told me. does anyone know what habitat they need to live in and what they eat as he will not eat either
>>
I don't know what the pet shop told you but generally anything someone at a pet shops tells you, you can bet it is wrong. The well informed pet store worker is an elusive creature, they do exist but they are difficult to find.
There are many websites that do have the correct info on how to keep a painted.
http://www.chelonia.org/
has good general info on how to set them up & keep them.
What foods are you trying to feed?
My painted is a little bit picky, he doesn't like many pellet foods but he does love to eat minnows, crickets, mealworms, thawed out frozen bloodworms, he even likes the thawed out aquatic turtle food I found at the local pet store. He'll eat some Reptomin, but turns his nose up at most other brands of pellet foods. He likes a variety, I feed him a different food item each time I feed him.
A new turtle just moving in may be a little freaked out & won't eat much until he gets comfortable in new surroundings.
What did the pet store tell you?
It might be easier to tell you where they went wrong if we knew what they said.
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PHRatz
thanks so much for writing back and helping me.
the pet shop told me that they dont live in water and just to put him in with wood chippings. they said that they eat catfood and vegetables which i have tried but he just wont eat them. do your turtles live in water etc
write back please
melxx
Painted turtles are semi-aquatic, so whatever tank or enclosure you keep them in needs to have plenty of water for them to swim around in, as well as a dry basking area (floating dock,etc.) equipped with a UVA/UVB lamp.
thanks ever so much for writing back. i just wondered how you feed the turtle? do you just take it out of the water to feed it etc?
also what do you feed your painted turtle
write back please
melxx
Painted turtles swallow their food underwater...so it's important to feed your turtle in water...whether you feed him in his tank or feed him in a separate container to help keep your tank cleaner for longer is up to you, but there has to be water in the container...as far as diet goes...they eat a lot of different things...my turtle eats the Reptomin turtle sticks but he also enjoys minnows, blood worms, freeze dried krill,earthworms, sometimes feeder crickets, and some vegetables and fruits also (grapes, rommaine lettuce, shredded carrots etc.)
He tends to like the Reptomin and minnows best though. It's important to vary the diet but you know just try a little bit of everything, they'll go for some things while they'll shy away from others....each turtle is a little different.
i have been trying to feed my turtle lettuce and carrots but he hasnt shown any interest. i have been told that turtles may not eat until they are happy in their habitat is that true. i am going to put my turtle into a water habitat tomorrow as the pet shop i bought him from said they didnt live in water. is he ok or is he just not eatin as e is in the wrong habitat?
Turtles can get stressed out when they are moved into a new home so the fact that he isn't eating is a pretty normal reaction. He SHOULD start eating after a couple days of getting used to his new surroundings. Do you know wat kind of painted it is? I find it very odd that someone would tell you that a painted doesn't need water.
o0o p.s. like I said before they need water to swallow their food so that could definitely be why he's not eating.
wel ive started putting him in the bath a lot recently and today i have bought loads of stuff for his tank which he needed, but still need a heater so for 2nite hes gonna stay in a normal tank until 2mora.nah i duno wot sort of painted he is to b honest. i thort they were all the same.yeah the pet shop i got him from talk rubbish really and i went back today and went mad at the woman i bought him off but she dint really care which really annoyed me. my turtle has started eating prawns (yesterday and 2day).what sort of painted is urs? wb
Make sure that what you have is a water turtle.
wel he goes mad everytime i take him out of water and will only eat when he is in the water. who wud tel me what he really is?
Who told you it was a painted turtle? I would like to see a pic or a really good description before I reccomend you change its habitat. It sounds like you are a true beginner and getting the genus wrong could result in death if you move it to a water habitat. Not only do pet stores give bad info, but I have seen them improperly label animals too. I could see a pet store labeling a brightly colored male Terrapene carolina as a painted turtle because it looks like their face and legs are "painted"
You stick one of those in an aquarium and it will appear to swim for a while, then it will drown.
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Don't put this turtle in water until you know for sure it is
a water turtle. Does it have a pretty flat shell or is it
rounded upward. I find it hard to believe any petshop would
mistake a turtle/tortoise for a water turtle. You are
obviously very new so do not put it in water until you are
ABSOLUTELY POSITIVE it is a water turtle. Get a picture
on here before you change anything or you could the drown
him. You could also take him to another petshop for identification or go on the internet and look at box turtles,
tortoises and painted turtles for another ID.
Linda
I agree.. let's find out for sure what species this turtle is before you do anything else.
I have seen turtles labled the wrong species in pet stores too so you do need to know exactly what you have.
WCT has a species photo gallery, start with their website & see if you can find a photo of a turtle like yours or take a photo of it & post it here.
World Chelonian Trust
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PHRatz
That's true...I agree with that...definitely check the species before changing the habitat...I apologize...I thought you were sure of the species.
oh my god uve got me really worried now
i duno how to put a pic of him on here otherwise i wud send u 1.
hes bout 4inches long and has bright orange and brown on his shell he also has brown and orange stripes on his legs.have u got a different emial address and i wil send you a picture of him? wel someone told me that they have to be fed in water so i put him in water and he has been feeding fine.the only time he will eat is when he is in water. everytime i try to take him out of the bath he goes mad n hates it in a tank without water. please write back
send it to me at iturnrocks@yahoo.com
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ok ive sent it to you, i looked on th inter net last nite and im pretty sure he is a painted turle but i would stil like your opinion
Perhaps someone else can identify. I personally have never seen this turtle before, or maybe its bad angles.
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Do you think it looks a lot like this one?
http://www.chelonia.org/Rpmanni1.jpg
It does to me. The photo I found is of an "ornate" wood turtle, that is a turtle that doesn't live in water like a painted turtle does.
Here's a care sheet on them:
http://www.chelonia.org/articles/rpulcherrimacare.htm
What do the rest of you think?
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PHRatz
Definitely a match! Im so glad we were able to save this turtle from a watery death.
You may want to read the following
www.chelonia.org/Articles/rpulcherrimacare.htm
.
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well when he is in the water his shell and chest plate are bright orange.his legs are also bright orange stripes too. i looked on the internet for a male Terrapine Carolina and i persoanlly dont think he looks much like it, i have looked for other pictures of painted turtles and i think he looks like one of those. thanks for your help though.
Its not a Terrapene carolina its an ornate wood turtle. Look at the other posts.
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so does this other turtle not live in water etc?
Please look at the care sheet for this turtle. These guys
ARE NOT true aquatic turtles like the painted turtle. I do
believe they enjoy shallow water but cannot swim like the
aquatic turtles. If you put this turtle in deep water it
will drown. You need to do some research and find out the
proper way to care for your new pet. It is NOT a painted
turtle! I have 3 and trust me, it's not!
well what other turle would it be, when they sold it to me they said it was a painted turtle. i have had him in a tank 6inches deep of water all day and he has beenn fine. i duno who to ask to see what he really is....who would tell me the truth to what he is?
Its called an ornate wood turtle. An ORNATE WOOD TURTLE is what it is called.
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n/p
http://www.austinsturtlepage.com/Care/cs-caowood.htm
This is a good basic care sheet from Autin's Turtle page. I've kept these before and they are semi-aquatic. That means a large land area and a moderately shallow water area. Good luck with your animal
>>i duno who to ask to see what he really is....who would tell me the truth to what he is?
You asked us. We are telling you the truth, you don't have a painted turtle you have a wood turtle.
Look at his feet, they aren't webbed. Look at his shell it's domed compared to a painted. Look at his skin it's more rough than a painted.
Look at the size of the webbed back feet of my western painted, he looks nothing like your wood turtle:
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PHRatz
but everytime hes not in water he goes mad and just hies in the wood chippings. he wont eat or drink wen he is in a wood-chip environment
Fine put your turtle in an aquatic environment and that will end this discussion.
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dnt get stresed i appreciate all the help uve given me but fine
the reason for the confusion is perhaps that your turtle is sometimes called a "painted wood turtle" which is not the same as a painted turtle.
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You came to this forum and admitted you know nothing about
turtles. We are trying to help you but you don't seem to
get it!!. The turtle you have IS NOT a water turtle!! You
keep arguing with us. Who do you think knows what they are
talking about.....the people that have owned turtles for
years or you and the petshop you bought it from.
Do your turtle a huge favor and take care of it as it should
be. If you keep it only in water it will either DROWN or
begin having shell and skin infections. It would be like
you having to live in water constantly. Do you think you
would be happy and healthy???
If you are not going to listen to people on this forum then
don't bother posting. This is very aggravating to all who have
tried to help you.
Linda
wow this is one big thread, im going to need a bigger monitor
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didn't anybody figure it out?????
PAINTED TURTLES SOMETIMES ARE FINICKY USE FREEZE DRIED KRILL OR FRESH EARTHWORMS AND WAXWORMS OR GO TO ANY PET SHOP AND BUY FEEDER GUPPIES OR ROSY REDS OR TUFFIES WHICH THEY CALL THEM
TRY THIS I USE THIS ON EASTERN PAINTEDS AND WORKS WELL GOOD LUCK WITH YOUR TURTLE .....SNAKE4420
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