Mackenzy

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Hi. I have 2 baby slider turtles, both boys, both about the size of a quarter. One is a Red Ear Slider, I call him Sheldon. The other is a Cumberland Slider, I call him Leonard. They’re in a 20 gallon tank for now, but I know as they grow I’m going to have to upgrade a good bit. They have filters and lights and basking areas already. I feed them both seperately outside of the tank because Leonard is more aggressive about food and I want to make sure Sheldon gets enough, and to also cut down on messes in the tank. But, I was wondering, as they grow up, will they fight? Should I separate them completely? Will they be ok together for their whole lives? Since they’re both male will they fight if there is no female, just them? Also, what type of plant, if any, would they like in the tank that will be safe for them both if they ate it?
 

Yvonne G

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You won't really know their sex until they get to the size of sexual maturity. Then the male's front claws grow real long, like Freddy Kruegar, and the tail grows longer and fatter. Water turtles get along better than tortoises do, but it's an individual thing. You won't know if yours are fighters until they get bigger.

Water turtles love water hyacinth and other edible water plants like money wort, water lettuce, ect. I sometimes slice a cucumber or a zucchini lengthwise and float a slice on the water.
 

Mackenzy

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You won't really know their sex until they get to the size of sexual maturity. Then the male's front claws grow real long, like Freddy Kruegar, and the tail grows longer and fatter. Water turtles get along better than tortoises do, but it's an individual thing. You won't know if yours are fighters until they get bigger.

Water turtles love water hyacinth and other edible water plants like money wort, water lettuce, ect. I sometimes slice a cucumber or a zucchini lengthwise and float a slice on the water.

When I got them both, I was told male, or at least likely male, but maybe not 100%. If one is a female, though, would I have a possibility of having random unplanned hatchlings at some point? They seem to get along pretty well except when food is involved, but I feed them separated, anyway. They’re prettty social and bask together tho, so hopefully they’ll keep getting along. But if they don’t, would they need to have a bigger tank or be separated altogether. I refuse to outright get rid of one if they don’t get along eventually, but it’d be nice to know what to do if that happened.
 

Markw84

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Sliders are the more aggressive of the N American turtles. Subspecies of the same species - Trachemys scripta, they will definitely interbreed readily. T s elegans and T s troostii and T s scripta are very often found in the wild as intergrades now due to the very common release of T scripta into wild populations as unwanted pets. They will do extremely well in most all locations in the US if released.

As young turtles they will get along well together. The "fighting" you see when feeding is a normal feeding activity many aquatic turtles do which allows the group to more easily tear up larger pieces of food. As young, they are quite carnivorous/insectivorous as opposed to vegetarian. As they age, they become more predominantly vegetarian, however sliders always stay partial to any meats they can find. I would be sure to get your turtles eating a commercial pellet to ensure proper vitamin, calcium, D3 magnesium intake. As very young, I especially like the Reptomin hatchling formula pellet. All my hatchling learn to quickly take this and it has a higher amount of the calcium/D3 and the pellets are small and soften easily as they eat. For staple as they grow larger, I use Mazuri aquatic turtle diet.

You do need to watch for aggression. That will be biting of the legs and tail, chasing, and biting and hanging on to the back of the neck. These are also mating rituals that can get quite destructive then as well. I personally will not keep a male Trachemys in my pond for that reason. So be prepared to separate, perhaps within a year or so.

There is no way to tell at quarter size the sex. IF the breeder had a very good incubator and knows he incubated at 82° and below, perhaps he is then right at a good chance for male.
 

Pastel Tortie

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I agree with @Markw84 about getting the hatchlings onto a good pellet. I have had good luck with getting little ones to eat the ReptoMin Pro Juvenile turtle pellets. They hold together in water, but they soften quickly so they're easy for a tiny turtle to eat. I've also had really good luck with the Omega One juvenile turtle pellets. Both are good, and both tend to be well received by hatchlings.
 
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