Help with Yellow bellied slider.

[gozzilla]

I've recently rescued a yellow bellied slider from a terrible home. It has been kept in a 6 inch by 3 inch plastic carrier like thing for around a year. I need some pointers on what I need, what to look out for, and how to get it to eat something besides turtle pellets. Would a 30g Rubbermaid box be ok for housing for the moment?

 

[Yellow Turtle01]

Sounds like he was living in a death bowl
30g would be great!
Pictures of the baby would be great especially eyes and head area.
Are his eyes oozing stuff, closed, cloudy? Is there any discharge coming out of his nose? Does he wheeze when be breathes? Has he pooped?
He needs a basking platform, something easy to climb up on. A rock is fine for now
He needs heat and UVB.
http://www.austinsturtlepage.com/Care/cs-yellowbelly.htm
You could try feeder insects, like waxworms. Many adult sliders enjoy their veggies, but he probably won't touch them now
What type of pellets are they? Feeding aquatic turtles commercial food is okay.

 

[gozzilla]

His eyes are fine, no wheezing or anything. I cant tell if its pooped, the water hasn't been changed or anything :/ What should thw temps be? And how would I set up the enclosure? I can't seem to find any info on them. Here are the pics.

 

[Yellow Turtle01]

Wow, he looks really good. What a cutie!
You've got to change the water every couple of days if you don't have a filter, sliders are messy things!
That care sheet is a good one He should have a basking end, with his rock/dock whatever you use for him, and a another basking rock without a light bulb, so he has a choice.
No substrate is fine for now, it would be difficult to clean without a filter anyway
Don't worry about water more than a few inches deep, even as babies they are proficient swimmers.
75-80ish on his hot area, and keeping the water around 75 increases appetite.
Do you have any lights, currently?

 

[gozzilla]

Not yet, I have only had him for a couple of days. Would sand be ok as a substrate? And would rocks from outside be ok I'd I cleaned them? Do you think a heat lamp would warm the water up to 75-80? And for uvb, Could i just take it outside for a hour a day?

 

[mike taylor]

The best way to keep them I have found is an outdoor pond . I have two filters in my pond .One is a uv filter the other is just a biological filter .

 

[gozzilla]

I won't be able to keep him outside because of cats and dogs :/ I can take him outside when I take my sulcata out to graze though.

 

[johnsonnboswell]

How about a 40 gallon rubber trough from tractor supply company? With an island for basking. Hang the light over the island. I use a rubber coated kitchen riser shelf with a flat rock for a basking platform, and underneath is a safe "cave."

 

[gozzilla]

What's an island basking? And if i get a few large rocks from outside and washed them off and everything would they be safe to use?

 

[Yellow Turtle01]

Not yet, I have only had him for a couple of days. Would sand be ok as a substrate? And would rocks from outside be ok I'd I cleaned them? Do you think a heat lamp would warm the water up to 75-80? And for uvb, Could i just take it outside for a hour a day?

I've had bad experience with sand clogging filters. Turtles also rummage on the bottom, and you wouldn't want him to swallow it
Rocks are fine
No, you usually have to have a water heater. They aren't very expensive
You 'could'. Turtles are fast and easily wander off. It's always good to have an additional UVB source indoors. By windows does not count, as the glass filters it out.

 

[Yellow Turtle01]

I won't be able to keep him outside because of cats and dogs :/ I can take him outside when I take my sulcata out to graze though.

You could fence it in

 

[Yellow Turtle01]

What's an island basking? And if i get a few large rocks from outside and washed them off and everything would they be safe to use?

I believe @johnsonnboswell just means an island, such as, rocks.
Rocks can be abrasive on turtle's shells and nails, but it would get him out of the water.

 

[gozzilla]

Ok, I'm going to buy a bag of sand in the next couple of days. Would that be enough for basking or would the rocks be better? And would a 10g tank be ok until I can get the tub?

 

[Yellow Turtle01]

Ok, I'm going to buy a bag of sand in the next couple of days. Would that be enough for basking or would the rocks be better? And would a 10g tank be ok until I can get the tub?

10g is fine for the moment.
You may want something sturdy underneath the sand so that it doesn't landslide wen he tried to walk up it.
Or, get a bag of river pebbles, which is just as much as sand

 

[gozzilla]

How could I clean a rock from outside to be suitable? I have no way out to town for a few days and no credit card.

 

[mike taylor]

When I was keeping my turtles inside I didn't have any substrate in the tank . It's just a big pain to keep clean . For one turtle I'd buy a big turtle tub off line . One side is land then a plastic ramp then the water. The ramp keeps the land out of the water . You can set it up on a table . Drill a hole in the bottom put in a drain . This will save you trouble on water changes . Because you are going to change the water .

 

[mike taylor]

Forgot the picture! This one is made by zoomed.

 

[gozzilla]

Nice, what size would i need? And what about cleaning a rock for a basking spot?

 

[gozzilla]

What do I need to add/do next? I used the lid from the kitted keeper he was in as a place for him to get out of water. How could I put a heat lamp on him?

 

[johnsonnboswell]

I believe @johnsonnboswell just means an island, such as, rocks.
Rocks can be abrasive on turtle's shells and nails, but it would get him out of the water.

An island for basking - because water turtles need to dry off and to bask. The point of making an island, rather than a dock, is that it is away from the sides so the turtle doesn't climb out. And a stock tank has curved sloped sides so a turtle dock doesn't always attach well.

There are many approaches, of course. I use a piece of flat paving stone. I don't have a pile of stones. Under the stone is a hiding spot. Any number of things can support the platform, and the platform certainly doesn't need to be rock. I use rubber coated wire shelving as support because it doesn't interfere with the filter or create dead spots in the current where gunk collects. The rock is a solar collector.

If you have enough space, you can make a floating ramp to the platform.