Any Common Snapping Turtle keepers here?

[saginawhxc]

I don't know where my obsession with snapping turtles began, but I've been borderline obsessed with them for as long as I remember. My ex wife wouldn't let me have one, and my current girlfriend is less than excited about the idea.

Ever since getting our first tortoise this obsession has rekindled for me. It's going to happen. It's just a matter of when. I've been thinking seriously about pulling the trigger on this soon though.

I was just wondering if anybody here has any real experience or advice. So much of the care info around the internet conflicts with itself.

 

[Berkeley]

I don't have any currently, but have kept, raised and bred dozens of them in the past. What kind of questions do you have, or what conflicting info are you running into?

--Berkeley

 

[saginawhxc]

I have never kept any aquatic turtle, so it will be new territory for me.

Growing up I did a lot of fishing and we would occasionally catch them. That is probably where the fascination started. There don't seem to be a ton of care sheets out there for them, and none as detailed as I would like. Like most on this forum I believe strongly in good husbandry so I just want to make sure I do things right. My plans tentatively include a summer pond fully fenced off to keep the dogs out, and a huge indoor tank for the rest of the year. I think I have most of the basics down such as diet, housing, etc... But the one thing that seems to be across the board is handling and feeding. One thing says never handle unless you need to, one says feed them in a separate container, one says a hand raised hatchling will grow up tame, and others say they are always dangerous.

One care sheet was bad enough it actually advocated holding a snapper by the tail.

Here's the thing. I'm not scared of them, but I do respect them. Obviously very interested in the species or I wouldn't be talking about this. I'm not looking for a "companion pet". I just really want to do what is best for the turtle to give it a situation it can thrive in. Of course if I can do that in a way that keeps all my fingers intact that would be good too.

 

[saginawhxc]

For the record I don't see handling the turtle to move to a feeding tub as being anymore stressful on a turtle than daily soaks for a tort are.

 

[Yvonne G]

I have a 600 gallon water trough with a Skippy filter and a young female snapper about dinner plate size. I never have to handle her, as the filter does a great job.

 

[saginawhxc]

It seems to me that a good filter really is key and most likely a major problem for most. That would likely be why some advocate feeding in a separate tub. This is exactly what I'm looking for. The direct experience of those whom I trust.

When I put together my set up I will make sure to really focus on the filter as a key component. Anything aquatic is new territory for me though. Every time I've come across them they tend to be in brackish waters with minimal flow. At what point do we start to cross a line from good filtering to too much flow? Is there a brand or style you recommend I start with looking at?

I appreciate any help or advice. I do not want to make the mistake of spending time and money getting a set up ready to find out I did it all wrong. I've been down that road.

 

[saginawhxc]

As soon as I posted that I realized you answered my question in your original post. I've been reading on skippy filters since. Than you, and sorry for not catching it the first time.

 

[Yvonne G]

It's a great filter, and the most expensive part of it is the sump pump. A plastic garbage can, some hose and tubing, some filter material and a bit of PVC and you're home free. My son-in-law set up the snapper filter in about an hour. Depending upon the size of the sump pump, it cleans the water pretty darned fast. I had a sump pump that had a screen over the bottom and it kept getting plugged up with the long fiber moss, so I got rid of that one and got one that will take debris up to about a half inch. Works great.

 

[Berkeley]

Here are some of my thoughts:
I have seen the pictures of 'tame' snappers perched on peoples shoulders, and have read a story or two about them. But I have never seen what I would call a 'tame' one in person. I have raised bunches from babies, and I never had one that calmed down significantly. Of course, I also didn't handle them every day either. I don't really see the point in having a 'tame' snapper.

In regards to the removal to another tub for feeding, that is generally a good idea. They eat a lot, and make a huge mess while eating (and, well, afterwards too....) so it does cut down on the load of water that has to be filtered or changed. Here is what my method has been: hatchlings up until about 6 or 7 inches lived in aquariums with filters. Once they hit 7 or 8 inches, I moved them into Rubbermaid stock tanks and quit filtering. I would do a complete water change once or twice a week. That worked for me and the turtles. They never had any shell or skin issues. Living in the stock tanks and doing complete water changes also eliminated the need to move them to another tub for feeding as well.

Handling them periodically is fine. It keeps them manageable instead of striking wildly and thrashing around. I agree, it is no more stressful than dropping a tortoise in a bath for 30 minutes. All of the snappers I have ever raised have been program animals for my environmental education, so they were often in a bin for a day traveling around.

Hope that helps. Let me know if you have any other questions or need some clarification. (Sorry this is kind of rushed, I'm getting ready to run out the door)

--Berkeley

 

[tortoise5643]

I got one when it was quarter size about 6 years ago. Within 3 years, it outgrew its 75 gallon tank so I passed it on to a friend with an outdoor pond. I always fed it with minnows or baby perch that I found in the creek near my house or bought at Petsmart. I never really did feed him pellets. Now, I have a hatchling again in a 55 gallon with a juvenile (very timid) map turtle and a hatchling softshell. The softshell and snapper are on the same minnow and perch diet but eat the pellets that i put in for the map as well. Here is a picture of him and his set up.

 

[BrianWI]

Get cheap, active cichlids for the tank. They eat what the snapper rips apart and causes the filter to overload.

 

[saginawhxc]

It's a great filter, and the most expensive part of it is the sump pump. A plastic garbage can, some hose and tubing, some filter material and a bit of PVC and you're home free.

I enjoy projects like this. I am confident I can do this.

 

[saginawhxc]

Here are some of my thoughts:
I have seen the pictures of 'tame' snappers perched on peoples shoulders, and have read a story or two about them. But I have never seen what I would call a 'tame' one in person. I have raised bunches from babies, and I never had one that calmed down significantly. Of course, I also didn't handle them every day either. I don't really see the point in having a 'tame' snapper.

I don't necessarily want one that is or isn't tame. I just want one and want to do what is best for the one I get. I have seen videos with people that have tame snappers and they are petting its head and waving their fingers in its face and telling us they would never strike at them. I call shenanigans on this. They are not a domesticated animal and I think that at some level they will always carry animal instincts. It's only a matter of time till you move just a little quick one day and trigger some kind of reflexive instinct. Heck, even cats and dogs do this. How many people have you heard talk about their dog after an attack? Every single person claims they never thought their dog would do that.

Call me a stick in the mud, but I believe in treating something like a snapping turtle as a wild animal at all times. Even if the turtle learns to not feel threatened by you, you should always treat it like it could strike at you at any time.

 

[saginawhxc]

I got one when it was quarter size about 6 years ago. Within 3 years, it outgrew its 75 gallon tank so I passed it on to a friend with an outdoor pond. I always fed it with minnows or baby perch that I found in the creek near my house or bought at Petsmart. I never really did feed him pellets. Now, I have a hatchling again in a 55 gallon with a juvenile (very timid) map turtle and a hatchling softshell. The softshell and snapper are on the same minnow and perch diet but eat the pellets that i put in for the map as well. Here is a picture of him and his set up.

I was looking at possibly picking something up used in the 75-100 gallon size to use as a starter tank. I can usually find something in that range reasonably on Craigslist.

 

[saginawhxc]

Get cheap, active cichlids for the tank. They eat what the snapper rips apart and causes the filter to overload.

That is an interesting idea. Doesn't the turtle attack the fish though?

 

[BrianWI]

That is an interesting idea. Doesn't the turtle attack the fish though?

Yes, hence the word "cheap". However, fish like convicts have a knack for staying alive.

 

[Berkeley]

I don't necessarily want one that is or isn't tame. I just want one and want to do what is best for the one I get. I have seen videos with people that have tame snappers and they are petting its head and waving their fingers in its face and telling us they would never strike at them. I call shenanigans on this. They are not a domesticated animal and I think that at some level they will always carry animal instincts. It's only a matter of time till you move just a little quick one day and trigger some kind of reflexive instinct. Heck, even cats and dogs do this. How many people have you heard talk about their dog after an attack? Every single person claims they never thought their dog would do that.

Call me a stick in the mud, but I believe in treating something like a snapping turtle as a wild animal at all times. Even if the turtle learns to not feel threatened by you, you should always treat it like it could strike at you at any time.

Agreed. And that was my point- though it may not have been clear since I was typing quickly. That is how I treat all of my animals, snappers or not, because they are still wild.
--Berkeley

 

[TammyJ]

I have never kept any aquatic turtle, so it will be new territory for me.

Growing up I did a lot of fishing and we would occasionally catch them. That is probably where the fascination started. There don't seem to be a ton of care sheets out there for them, and none as detailed as I would like. Like most on this forum I believe strongly in good husbandry so I just want to make sure I do things right. My plans tentatively include a summer pond fully fenced off to keep the dogs out, and a huge indoor tank for the rest of the year. I think I have most of the basics down such as diet, housing, etc... But the one thing that seems to be across the board is handling and feeding. One thing says never handle unless you need to, one says feed them in a separate container, one says a hand raised hatchling will grow up tame, and others say they are always dangerous.

One care sheet was bad enough it actually advocated holding a snapper by the tail.

Here's the thing. I'm not scared of them, but I do respect them. Obviously very interested in the species or I wouldn't be talking about this. I'm not looking for a "companion pet". I just really want to do what is best for the turtle to give it a situation it can thrive in. Of course if I can do that in a way that keeps all my fingers intact that would be good too.

I love these turtles.
I have seen a lot of shows in which they hold the turtle up by the tail and I hate it. It looks like it may permanently injure them. If you have to handle one, what is the best and safest way? I know it is best for the large ones not to handle them at all if it's not really necessary.

 

[saginawhxc]

As a kid I was always told just to grab them by the tail or on the back half only. Basically anywhere on the front half of the turtle they can strike. The few times I handled them it always worked for me, but it's been a couple of decades since last time I've handled one.

Now as an adult I now know that you can severely hurt one by grabbing him by the tail. I don't recall ever doing so myself though, I only ever handled the small ones. I was a little afraid of the one big one I came across. I don't thing I ever handled one bigger than 7 or 8 inches. Heck, I was a kid, it might not have even been that big.

 

[saginawhxc]

I posted this a couple of weeks ago on the progress thread for my tortoise. I almost ran over this guy on the road. I stopped to remove him but before I could some girl fearlessly picked him up and then almost got bit. She panicked and threw him to the edge of the road. It didn't seem to phase him so hopefully he was okay. In a screwed up way it was kind of funny.