Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Hey,
when i was a kid, we found 3 baby painteds in a local river that was about to be destroyed for developing. we took them home and put them in our pond, in a 10 gallon mesh cage. we left them i nthere for about a month or so, so that they would learn the smell of the water as home. they stuck around for about a year, then they all left.

I'd like to try some turtles again, but being there are no natural ponds or lakes near by (not without crossing a highway), i'm afraid of what would happen if they did leave.

has anyone had success in keeping turtles in their pond? ours is LARGE for a made pond, 3 levels, the biggest level being about 5000 gallons i would guess (rough estimate- it's 6 feet deep, 9 feet long, 5 feet wide)... the next level is shallow and murky (for the muddy plants), and then another ornamental pond to create an additional waterfall.
i definitly will not attempt it if turtles normally won't stick around, but i'm wondering if anyone has had success and tips they could pass along. we regularly added small guppies to give them their own fish to chase, and hand fed them earth worms and wax worms for a treat, plus they loved the pellets. they were definitly well fed lil guys!

The only way to insure a turtle won't leave is to have a secure fence around the pond.

you can try to put them in there and see if they leave. What I would do is buy arrow plants and catails because they love to eat them. However like the last person said it is best to have a fence if you want them to stay for good. I would assume you could give them turtle food and they would stick around for a bit.