Cheese is SO beautiful! Absolutely adorable!Just one more picture. I took it this morning while cheese was getting sunshine. Okay, maybe 2.View attachment 274501View attachment 274502
Thank you. I saw your post on the progress of your babies. So cute. Pin and bold, right? Great names.Cheese is SO beautiful! Absolutely adorable!
Thank you! I think they sort of named themselves!Thank you. I saw your post on the progress of your babies. So cute. Pin and bold, right? Great names.
I will. So far he doesn't have any interest in any pellets I've tried but I offer daily anyway. I'll look for the ones you have recommended and see if we have better luck with those.Try to work some commercial turtle pellets into Cheese's regular diet (daily), along with the rotation of worms and snails. A good commercial pellet will have enough D3 in it to make UVB exposure OPTIONAL, instead of a requirement. That may allow for some flexibility on indoor UVB lighting, if/when you ever need it.
I like the ReptoMin Pro Juvenile turtle pellets for hatchlings that size. They soften easily in water, yet hold together well. The short sticks make an easy target for baby turtles. Both of my mud turtles and my Gulf Coast box turtle found these pellets (short sticks) palatable when they were little.
I've also had good luck with the Omega One Juvenile Turtle pellets and the Zoo Med Natural Aquatic Turtle Hatchling formula. I haven't tried the Hikari Carnivore Sinking pellets, but I've heard good things about it. @Moozillion feeds it to Nelson, her razorback musk hatchling.
Especially for the Zoo Med hatchling pellets (which are tiny), you won't need a large container of it, as the hatchling will likely outgrow it before you run out.
You can still use any pellets your turtle refuses to eat, by gutloading earthworms and other feeder invertebrates. That's basically the only good solution I know of to get vitamins and balanced nutrients into a picky turtle.
I understand completely. Pin doesn't want anything to do with pellets, although she(?) used to eat a small amount of them, very early on. Bold has gotten more finicky lately and insists on the Omega One Juvenile Turtle pellets.I will. So far he doesn't have any interest in any pellets I've tried but I offer daily anyway. I'll look for the ones you have recommended and see if we have better luck with those.
Standing outside in the sun every morning kinda gets old in our southeast Texas heat. Lol.
I'm looking for info on mud turtle care. I'm sure it's on the forum but I can't find it. Can anyone point me in the right direction?
Thanks for your response. We have a T8 we aren't using right now. I'll try it out when we move to the bigger tank next month. As for filtering, I'm just changing the water every 3 days right now. I have a pothos in the tank with him but I can put in more plants. Maybe anubis or java fern.Those are great turtles to keep! Here is my experience when I raised a baby and eventually released it into a backyard pond. Maybe it can help you..
1. I kept mine in a 30 gal Tuff Stuff tub (bought it on Amazon) with water about 4 inches deep. Mine seemed to like the dark color of the tub. But a 10 gal tank is fine as well.I would maybe put some dark paper on the back and maybe one side (that is my opinion, not science.) They are very shy while young, not bold like red-eared sliders. Filtering water that shallow is a pain in the neck, that is the part I had trouble with. I used sponge filters, and they are not as effective with water that shallow, but better than nothing. Maybe you have a better way.
2. From advice from others, I put in some floating plants (real) and some plastic plants. The turtle really liked to climb onto a plant near the surface with just its nose out. I did have a brick platform for it to climb out on, but I never saw the turtle climb all the way out. It preferred to bask in the water while clinging to a plant.
3. For UVB, I first used a coil bulb but then switched to a T8 tube. The T8 is way better. These turtles do not need as much UVB as turtles that are serious baskers like sliders, maps, etc. You can hang or prop up the T8 about 14 inches up from the water surface and be fine. I would not go closer than 11-12 inches unless you have screen or something to diffuse the light a little. I used egg-crate diffuser under my T8 to break up the light a bit.
I hope that helps. They really do well as long as they are not stressed. Mine is in a pond now. I did not see it for almost a year, but this Spring I saw it poking its head out of the surface. It grew a bit more since its release.
Anacharis works well, and it can just float freely in the water (no planting required). Your hatchling might even sample the leaves a bit.Thanks for your response. We have a T8 we aren't using right now. I'll try it out when we move to the bigger tank next month. As for filtering, I'm just changing the water every 3 days right now. I have a pothos in the tank with him but I can put in more plants. Maybe anubis or java fern.
Can you us some pics?Those are great turtles to keep! Here is my experience when I raised a baby and eventually released it into a backyard pond. Maybe it can help you..
1. I kept mine in a 30 gal Tuff Stuff tub (bought it on Amazon) with water about 4 inches deep. Mine seemed to like the dark color of the tub. But a 10 gal tank is fine as well.I would maybe put some dark paper on the back and maybe one side (that is my opinion, not science.) They are very shy while young, not bold like red-eared sliders. Filtering water that shallow is a pain in the neck, that is the part I had trouble with. I used sponge filters, and they are not as effective with water that shallow, but better than nothing. Maybe you have a better way.
2. From advice from others, I put in some floating plants (real) and some plastic plants. The turtle really liked to climb onto a plant near the surface with just its nose out. I did have a brick platform for it to climb out on, but I never saw the turtle climb all the way out. It preferred to bask in the water while clinging to a plant.
3. For UVB, I first used a coil bulb but then switched to a T8 tube. The T8 is way better. These turtles do not need as much UVB as turtles that are serious baskers like sliders, maps, etc. You can hang or prop up the T8 about 14 inches up from the water surface and be fine. I would not go closer than 11-12 inches unless you have screen or something to diffuse the light a little. I used egg-crate diffuser under my T8 to break up the light a bit.
I hope that helps. They really do well as long as they are not stressed. Mine is in a pond now. I did not see it for almost a year, but this Spring I saw it poking its head out of the surface. It grew a bit more since its release.
I will keep a close eye on Cheese. My plan is to keep him in his current 5 gallon with visits to the 10 gallon when I can watch and be home.Plan on getting an aquatic heater for at least the cooler part of the year. You may find it easier to keep the water at a stable temperature vs. the air. Definitely keep an eye on the temperatures.
You will just need to observe your hatchling for a while, and see what trouble Cheese can get into with the setup. Make sure he can't get flipped over or stuck anywhere.
Otherwise, Cheese will redecorate to his liking!
How deep is the water in the 10 gallon tank? Whether real or fake, Cheese will appreciate some aquatic plants to perch on and hide behind. If you go with real plants, anacharis strands have worked well for me.
For Bold and Pinstripe, I initially cut pieces of longer trailing plastic plants (reptile safe), and I added or replaced the plastic plant strands with anacharis.
That is a fantastic set-upThis is what I used to house a baby mud turtle. A plastic tub, a UVB light fixture hung on a PVC stand. This is a Tuff Stuff KTM102, but you can use a cement mix tub from Home Depot or Lowes that are only $15 or so. Much better than a 5 or 10 gal tank once your baby mud turtle is starting to grow out of the 5 gal. You have to think of how you will be able to easily clean the water, because turtles are dirty. Tubs make it easier, well, in my opinion anyway. The light fixture in the pic is an Arcadia HO T5 from lightyourreptiles.com. View attachment 274835
DEFINITELY a cutie!!!!Just one more picture. I took it this morning while cheese was getting sunshine. Okay, maybe 2.View attachment 274501View attachment 274502
I'm looking for info on mud turtle care. I'm sure it's on the forum but I can't find it. Can anyone point me in the right direction?