anyone know anthing about these mini turtles??

[akestler]

Well, I was walking through the mall today and what should I find at a kiosk but these ADORABLE mini turtles. I just had to buy them. Call it an impulse buy. I'm pretty sure I got royally ripped off, but I've been wanting a couple of these for a long time and haven't been able to find them. But there they were, and now here they are, on my desk.
They're called red eared sliders, and they look like little miniature turtles. I have them in a large version of those plastic tanks that you keep hermit crabs in. It's about one third filled with water, with a floating plastic rock that they can "sun themselves" on. I positioned my desk lamp over it to give them some light. I didn't buy the food they had at the place where I bought them because they had already cleaned me out of money, and I wanted to check here first to gather opinions. Here's a picture of the set-up (not very elaborate, I know):

And here's one of the turtle himself:

I have two of them in the tank. Does anyone know anything about these? What to feed them, any special care instructions? Yes, I know I should have found this out beforehand, but like I said, it was an impulse buy! Any information would be greatly appreciated!

edit: just to give you an idea of how big the tank is in relation to the turtles, the turtle is that thing on the floating rock all the way on the right in the picture of the tank.

[Pi]

mini turtles? not for long.

They get bigger. My friend has has two, one is an adult and is about 9"(females get even bigger), the other is still a young and only about 6-7". You will want a 55 gallon for one (the smallest I've heard of is a 30...but keep in mind, that's really cramped for an adult as the length of a typical 30gal. is 30" and the turtles will be about 10"). My friend keeps both in a 75.

They get turtle pellets, fruits and some veggies, and the occasional feeder goldfish Only thing is, the old one was too slow to catch two very crafty fish and they grew up! Now they have two 6" goldfish tankmates...

They can be pretty messy, so you need a good filter. They also require a warm temperature and do best with UVB lighting. Here are two good links:
www.austinsturtlepage.com/Care/cs-slider.htm
www.resoasis.com/care.htm (this website has a lot of information)

Also, they live a long time...up to 50 years! So I hope you are in this for the long haul...

(Some impulse buy!)

Pi

[amanichen]

They're also illegal to have as pets in more than one state, and they carry mirobes such as salmonella.

As Pi said: get ready for a long committment

[teresa]

A really long commitment. My sis-in-law did the same thing when my nephew was turning 2. She impulsively bought him a pair of 'mini' turtles. well long story short, the kids has moved out (now is 20 years old) and the turtles are still there, and not so 'mini' anymore. She keeps them in a 75 gal during the winter and out in a pond during the warm months.

[akestler]

hmmm ... all things I did not know. I don't know how I get myself into these things. I knew turtles had a very long life span, but I guess I thought that it would be reduced in captivity. Not that I WANT them to die, but usually life spans are reduced in captivity. I was told they would grow, but nowhere near the size that the websites said they would grow to. (Thanks for the links, Pi!) Well, I'm moving into my apartment in the beginning of June, and I'll have much more space then. I know turtles grow very slowly, so they should be alright in what they're in until then, right? How much do tanks of that size run? Just the tank, without any extra stuff?

[akestler]

I've been doing a lot of research on these things during the course of the evening (now early morning). Apparently, it is illegal to sell turtles under 4 inches (which mine are) UNLESS they are for "educational purposes". And sure enough, on the little care sheet I was given when I bought them, it says "for educational purposes only". So that takes care of the legal question. That still doesn't excuse the fact that the person who sold them to me completely lied about the size they would grow to and the habitat they required. I am so sick of people lying about the care requirements of animals just to make a buck. I have absolutely NO idea what I am going to do with these things. Sorry I'm rambling, I'm just totally freaked out right now. If anyone knows where I can get a 55-gallon aquarium for a not-astronomical sum of money, please let me know.

[Mellyn]

Sometimes you can get lucky and find aquarium stuff at yard sales. Just check the classifieds in your local paper. It has listings of yard sales. You might also find people who want to sell thier old stuff.

[twoluvcats]

watch the paper...and if you have a lfs nearby, let them know you are looking for a tank...I often see full 55g setups being dumped by people here for around $100.


aaahhhh, the benifits of research first

[akestler]

very true twoluv ... you'd think I would've learned by now, but no such luck! Thanks for the replies, everyone! You've all been very helpful. My friend said that he has a 55-gallon that's just sitting around that I can have, so it looks like I'll only need to buy a filter, heater, and basking lamp. Hope other people learn from my impulsiveness - don't buy anything, no matter how cute it is, without first researching! Thanks again everyone!