Hello! I'm new and I have 5 younger siblings who are very excited about the turtle and want to help. (The youngest is 6) We have let her roam around the floor between our legs but are we stressing her out? I don't let the kids pick her up for fear of them accidentally dropping her but how much handling is safe for the turtle and for the kids?
Turtles and small children
- Thread starter Mcarp35
- Start date
- Joined
- Aug 27, 2012
- Messages
- 2,238
The floor isn't safe for the turtle.
Everyone needs to wash hands after touching her.
Everyone needs to wash hands after touching her.
Never is the floor safe for a tortoise or turtle.
Eating a dust bunny can cause impaction, let alone other objects.
The temperatures on the floor are also likely to be wrong for the animal.
And accidents will happen.
Keep your turtle in it's enclosure whenever possible.
Eating a dust bunny can cause impaction, let alone other objects.
The temperatures on the floor are also likely to be wrong for the animal.
And accidents will happen.
Keep your turtle in it's enclosure whenever possible.
Never trust dogs!
Even nice friendly dogs after years of contact with a tortoise will suddenly decide 'chew toy'!
The kids can stroke her head and neck gently and watch her do the most adorable things.
They can hand feed her which is a wonderful thing, but at the end of the day they are usually not too keen on being picked up and handled.
Even nice friendly dogs after years of contact with a tortoise will suddenly decide 'chew toy'!
The kids can stroke her head and neck gently and watch her do the most adorable things.
They can hand feed her which is a wonderful thing, but at the end of the day they are usually not too keen on being picked up and handled.
We had already been hand feeding her (it was how we discovered her love of raspberries) would a hamster ball work for letting her roam a little? Not on the cold floor but we have a train table that she could move on. I really appreciate having someone to ask bout her my neighbor didn't really know much about the turtle when she gave it to us.
How big is your turtle? I'd let it's behavior dictate how much you interact with it. How cold is your floor? Clean an area of floor and sit your kids down with it. I don't think a hamster ball would work.
- Joined
- Aug 27, 2012
- Messages
- 2,238
No hamster ball.
Make the biggest possible indoor habitat. Try to design an outdoor habitat, too, that is predator/dog proof.
My 5 year old granddaughter enjoys finding worms & slugs under rocks and feeding them to my turtles. Involve them in care, not play.
Make the biggest possible indoor habitat. Try to design an outdoor habitat, too, that is predator/dog proof.
My 5 year old granddaughter enjoys finding worms & slugs under rocks and feeding them to my turtles. Involve them in care, not play.
Can the dogs go inside for 30 minutes so your turtle can roam around a little bit? If so, just watch it so it doesn't get lost, I've experienced this just turning my head for seconds. As mentioned, let's see the habitat and turtle. The kids can help by replacing water, giving it food, hand feeding. It can stress them to handle often, unless being transferred by an adult. They can squirm out of the kids hands and the kids may drop them. It is fun to watch them do their thing outside!
When I was younger it was my job to prepare food and poop-scoop the RES and tree frog enclosure. We didn't really play with them but I enjoyed tong feeding them and just watching them for hours, but I was reptile obsessed. I used to read out loud to all of my pets..maybe suggest that, more so for the benefit of the kiddos, haha.
Reading to them is a great idea! That would my youngest brother a ton with his reading skills! Thank you!
I think she is an ornate box turtle, she is 3.5" right now here is a pic. I have already started working on fixing issues with her enclosure that I discovered after reading a link someone sent me on my introduction post
Attachments
- Joined
- Jun 1, 2015
- Messages
- 132
Probably already know this then, but wood shavings do not make a suitable substrate. Easily swallowed by the turtle, molds easily, doesn't allow for digging. Try coco fibre (which will help maintain the humidity).
Angel Carrion
Well-Known Member
Yes, coco fiber, peat moss, etc are good substrates. High humidity is a must.
An indoor enclosure at least 12 inches deep with at least 12-13 square feet of floor space is best. Outdoor is even better.
Sphagnum moss and milled coconut husk fiber (coco fiber/coir) mixed together is a good moisture retaining substrate. It needs to be about 5-6 inches deep throughout the enclosure. Humidity needs to be between 70-90% in the enclosure. Using an accurate hydrometer is the best way to measure the levels. Having a water dish under the heat lamp is a way to keep humidity up, just make sure the water doesn't get too hot for the turtle. The moistened substrate will also keep humidity up. The water dish needs to be big enough that the turtle can soak on her own, but shallow enough that she doesn't accidentally flip over while trying to climb in or out. The one in your picture seems fine, just maybe a bigger one. Misting the enclosure is another good way to keep humidity up.
Temp ranges; 80ish F on warm side, 70-75 F on cool side, 85-90 F for the basking spot. Nighttime temps should not go below 65 F.
Heat lamp UVA and a UVB bulb will be needed, or you can get a mercury vapor bulb which produces heat and UVB. If you get a heat lamp and UVB bulb separate of each other, make sure to not get a coil bulb. Those can damage turtle eyes and cause blindness. A UVB bulb should be replaced every 6 months, but a mercury vapor bulb can be replaced every 12-18 months. The lamps need to be 16-18 inches above turtle so as to avoid burning them.
Using a digital temp gun is most useful in reading the temps accurately. I got mine off amazon for 12-14 bucks.
An indoor enclosure at least 12 inches deep with at least 12-13 square feet of floor space is best. Outdoor is even better.
Sphagnum moss and milled coconut husk fiber (coco fiber/coir) mixed together is a good moisture retaining substrate. It needs to be about 5-6 inches deep throughout the enclosure. Humidity needs to be between 70-90% in the enclosure. Using an accurate hydrometer is the best way to measure the levels. Having a water dish under the heat lamp is a way to keep humidity up, just make sure the water doesn't get too hot for the turtle. The moistened substrate will also keep humidity up. The water dish needs to be big enough that the turtle can soak on her own, but shallow enough that she doesn't accidentally flip over while trying to climb in or out. The one in your picture seems fine, just maybe a bigger one. Misting the enclosure is another good way to keep humidity up.
Temp ranges; 80ish F on warm side, 70-75 F on cool side, 85-90 F for the basking spot. Nighttime temps should not go below 65 F.
Heat lamp UVA and a UVB bulb will be needed, or you can get a mercury vapor bulb which produces heat and UVB. If you get a heat lamp and UVB bulb separate of each other, make sure to not get a coil bulb. Those can damage turtle eyes and cause blindness. A UVB bulb should be replaced every 6 months, but a mercury vapor bulb can be replaced every 12-18 months. The lamps need to be 16-18 inches above turtle so as to avoid burning them.
Using a digital temp gun is most useful in reading the temps accurately. I got mine off amazon for 12-14 bucks.
Angel Carrion
Well-Known Member
Box turtles are diurnal, meaning active during the day. Generally they forage and eat in the morning, burrow down in the afternoon during the hottest part of the day, then come back out in the evening to forage and such some more, then go to sleep as the sun is going down. 12 hours of light and heat, 12 hours of darkness. So turn the lights off at night.
If the temps drop too low during the night, you can get a CHE (ceramic heat emitter) to heat the enclosure without producing any light.
If the temps drop too low during the night, you can get a CHE (ceramic heat emitter) to heat the enclosure without producing any light.
Angel Carrion
Well-Known Member
Best way I can see the kids interacting with the turtle is by making the enclosure really fun for the turtle by giving access to things to climb (safe rocks, logs, sticks, etc) and burrow under, plus plenty of hides and plants. That way as the turtle investigates the enclosure, as long as the kids stay relatively out of her sight and still, they can watch.
If she's okay with hand feeding, teaching the kids how to use a set of reptile feeding tongs and feeding her crickets, night crawlers, mealworms, and different fruits off of them is another fun interactive activity. Just be careful not to over feed because that can lead to the turtle becoming overweight which will cause medical issues. Plus, she won't be able to close her shell properly and that can stress her out. I think the bugs and worms will be the most fun.
The reading out loud suggestion is a very good one. Just make sure to have the kid read calmly without yelling or sudden movements. Nice, calm, relaxed. Three words to live by when interacting with a reptile.
If she's okay with hand feeding, teaching the kids how to use a set of reptile feeding tongs and feeding her crickets, night crawlers, mealworms, and different fruits off of them is another fun interactive activity. Just be careful not to over feed because that can lead to the turtle becoming overweight which will cause medical issues. Plus, she won't be able to close her shell properly and that can stress her out. I think the bugs and worms will be the most fun.
The reading out loud suggestion is a very good one. Just make sure to have the kid read calmly without yelling or sudden movements. Nice, calm, relaxed. Three words to live by when interacting with a reptile.
Angel Carrion
Well-Known Member
She looks pretty young. If she's only 3.5", then I assume she's a juvenile, since ornate box turtles are generally 4-5 inches in size. I would suggest keeping humidity between 80-90% instead of 70-90%. Once she gets a bit bigger, 70-90% humidity range will be fine. It may even be fine now, honestly, I just like erring on the side of caution with juveniles and babies.
Angel Carrion
Well-Known Member
Is that a red bulb reflection I see shining down on her carapace from behind? If so, that's a no-no. Colored bulbs can confuse turtles, irritate their eyes, and cause them to eat their substrate because they can't see it properly and think it's food, which can lead to impaction, a major medical issue.
In my opinion, if you want an interactive pet for your younger siblings, you should get some sort of little mammal for them - a gerbil, rat, guinea pig, etc. Turtles are not domesticated and they don't appreciate being handled. If hand feeding, cleaning the habitat, changing the water, etc. isn't enough for the kids, then a turtle isn't the kind of animal they should be interacting with.
