Hello, everyone, my name is Jeremy, and this is "George"

Jdaniel

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His name is tentative, because I am not 100% sure of gender.

Pretty sure that he is a gulf coast box turtle.

I nearly hit him and two others with the lawnmower a few weeks ago.
Local regulations say that I can only have one as a pet, so I decided to keep the smallest one.
I will be building him a predator proof outside pen, hopefully within a month or two, meanwhile I have him in this terrarium.
Definitely been a steep learning curve for me, having never cared for reptiles before.

I have decided to join here because it seems to have very knowledge people.

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Jdaniel

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Thanks for the welcome everyone, here is a gif of him to get an idea of how small he really is.

Does anyone know if I guessed right about gender?

Note:
Felt bad about having to turn him over like that, but you need to see the underside to tell, so I did it when I had to move him out of his water to change it.

IMG_0161.GIF
 

Yvonne G

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Welcome to the Forum, Jeremy!

Your new little baby is way too small yet to be able to tell his gender.

I'd like to make a suggestion about the waterer you're using for George. It's quite dangerous because of the steep sides. He may overbalance trying to climb out and tip over backwards, landing on his back in the water. Most of us use plant saucers for water and we sink them down into the substrate. The sloping sides of the saucer make it easier for little babies to climb out without tipping on their back.
 

Jdaniel

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Welcome to the Forum, Jeremy!

Your new little baby is way too small yet to be able to tell his gender.

I'd like to make a suggestion about the waterer you're using for George. It's quite dangerous because of the steep sides. He may overbalance trying to climb out and tip over backwards, landing on his back in the water. Most of us use plant saucers for water and we sink them down into the substrate. The sloping sides of the saucer make it easier for little babies to climb out without tipping on their back.

Oh, I had been worried about that, but I saw him right himself very easily (less than 5 seconds)when he flipped himself, so I thought it was ok.
Got him the special waterer with the internal ramp and he still tries to use the corners to climb out, the silly thing.
But I will definitely give him the clay saucer, not only sounds safer but he will have a much easier time getting in and out with it, I think.

On another subject, I have heard that coiled fluorescent tubes were considered bad for turtles, does this include the 13 watt 10.0 compact florescent?

The image below is the kit I was sold.

Would I be better off replacing the uvb with the 5.0 version, or getting a tube light?
(Yes, I was told the image below was appropriate lighting for him.):confused:

Edit: temporarily have the uv buld off for now.
 

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Jdaniel

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Never mind, after further reading, I think I had better get the tube light, looks like 5.0 would work.

Good thing that the pet store has a no hassle return policy!

Here's the new update pic on his terrarium (Unfortunately, he's sulking behind the terra cotta tube, he doesn't like me moving things around)

Btw, what's the best way to get him to trust me more? He is very shy and often goes to hide if I get within even ten feet.
 

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Pastel Tortie

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I've had a Gulfie for about three years now. Junior was a hatchling when we met her. She's now just over a four inches long SCL (straight carapace length). She pretty much does what she wants to do, and box turtles will often challenge the sanity of their keepers, especially that first winter (but any winter will do).

You have a super secret, high stealth, special ops turtle. I'm just going to go ahead and tell you that it's only a matter of time until you play hide-and-seek with George... And lose. Badly. I've managed to loose Junior repeatedly in a 55 gallon bin, and I promise I'm not inept. They really are that good at hiding. You end up having to get good at boxie forensics, learning to spot those telltale signs to figure out what the boxie stubbornly won't divulge.

The pool in Junior's indoor enclosure got an upgrade (a small water filter and some rock on the bottom) a couple weeks ago, and so far she has refused to let us see her use the pool with its upgrades. We have spotted turtle poop and strands of moss in her pool, though, and noticed her carapace clean and damp early in the morning (after she went for a covert dip in her pool). And she's 3+ years old now.
 

Pastel Tortie

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Now is a great time to keep a written or electronic (permanent) record of George's weights and measurements. It will be a sanity saver in the future, especially if you ever get another turtle (of any species), as you will have some kind of baseline for comparison.
 

Pastel Tortie

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I'll have to look it up to be sure, but you may be able to tell on gender around 2.5 inches SCL.
 

Chefdenoel10

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His name is tentative, because I am not 100% sure of gender.

Pretty sure that he is a gulf coast box turtle.

I nearly hit him and two others with the lawnmower a few weeks ago.
Local regulations say that I can only have one as a pet, so I decided to keep the smallest one.
I will be building him a predator proof outside pen, hopefully within a month or two, meanwhile I have him in this terrarium.
Definitely been a steep learning curve for me, having never cared for reptiles before.

I have decided to join here because it seems to have very knowledge people.

View attachment 299339View attachment 299340

Hello and welcome to the forum!! There are many people here who will help you.
I just had to write to say....
IT GAVE ME GOOSE BUMPS WHEN YOU SAID LAWN MOWER!!! ?
Wish you could have kept all three..
please ..... next time you do the lawn go out and look for turtles first?????
 

Jdaniel

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Joined
Jul 6, 2020
Messages
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Location (City and/or State)
Mobile, Alabama
I
Hello and welcome to the forum!! There are many people here who will help you.
I just had to write to say....
IT GAVE ME GOOSE BUMPS WHEN YOU SAID LAWN MOWER!!! ?
Wish you could have kept all three..
please ..... next time you do the lawn go out and look for turtles first?????
Did, none were visible then.
Saw most of them from grass movement, my grass grows crazy fast.
I've had a Gulfie for about three years now. Junior was a hatchling when we met her. She's now just over a four inches long SCL (straight carapace length). She pretty much does what she wants to do, and box turtles will often challenge the sanity of their keepers, especially that first winter (but any winter will do).

You have a super secret, high stealth, special ops turtle. I'm just going to go ahead and tell you that it's only a matter of time until you play hide-and-seek with George... And lose. Badly. I've managed to loose Junior repeatedly in a 55 gallon bin, and I promise I'm not inept. They really are that good at hiding. You end up having to get good at boxie forensics, learning to spot those telltale signs to figure out what the boxie stubbornly won't divulge.

The pool in Junior's indoor enclosure got an upgrade (a small water filter and some rock on the bottom) a couple weeks ago, and so far she has refused to let us see her use the pool with its upgrades. We have spotted turtle poop and strands of moss in her pool, though, and noticed her carapace clean and damp early in the morning (after she went for a covert dip in her pool). And she's 3+ years old now.
So, ignoring his provide hiding places and burying himself in the substrate sounds about right then.
You mentioned keeping records of his length and Weight.
While I don't have a scale that sensitive, I had a small plastic caliper that I measured him with when I first found him.
He was about 2 & 1/4 inches then, and about 2&3/8 inches when I measured him a few days ago.
 

dalein

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Jul 8, 2020
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Location (City and/or State)
Wilson
His name is tentative, because I am not 100% sure of gender.

Pretty sure that he is a gulf coast box turtle.

I nearly hit him and two others with the lawnmower a few weeks ago.
Local regulations say that I can only have one as a pet, so I decided to keep the smallest one.
I will be building him a predator proof outside pen, hopefully within a month or two, meanwhile I have him in this terrarium.
Definitely been a steep learning curve for me, having never cared for reptiles before.

I have decided to join here because it seems to have very knowledge people.

View attachment 299339View attachment 299340
 

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