Hiya :-) I'm Lea x

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Lea

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Hi everyone I'm Lea. I have 3 yellow belly slider turtles. Two are around 3 years old and one is a baby. I don't know much about looking after turtles as I only got them recently so I need all the help I can get. I got my turtles given to me as their previous owner didn't have time for them and neglected them. When I got them they were in brown water that wasn't even deep enough to swim in :-( anyway they are looked after now and I want to do my best for them but like I said, I don't really know what I'm doing! I currently have a 100L tank with a water heater set at 26 and a water filter. I also have a UVB strip bulb which they spend a lot of time basking under on their dock. They seem happy enough and love basking and swimming and they eat turtle pellets and pond plants. One thing I'm not sure of is whether I should have a heat lamp?? I keep getting told differently. They never had a heat lamp with their previous owner so I'm worried about introducing one now. Can anyone help? Thanks :) x
 

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Hi Lea:

Welcome to the Forum!!

May we know where you are?

Turtles have to be in water in order to swallow their food, just in case you didn't already know that.

Yes, it would be nice to have a light that gives off heat over the area where they bask. It would act like the sun...they climb out and bask to warm up.

It sounds like you're doing much more for these poor turtles than their previous owner. I'm sure they appreciate it.
 

stephiiberrybean

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Hey :) Welcome.

I don't know much about Turtles so can't be much help i'm afraid.
I would think they'd greatly appreciate a basking lamp though to lay under though.

Sounds like they've got a really nice home with you now and a good future ahead of them too :)
 

Jacqui

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Welcome!! Glad you have found us. Has the baby's shell become firm,yet? How big size wise are the other two?
 

Tnewton

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Personally I dont think they need a basking spot. I have several red eared sliders and african sidenecks and none bask. I do have a doc they can get out and dry off if they want. As long as your water is warm and the food you feed as calciu, and d3 they will digest food just fine. Water to cold, food wont digest and could cause problems
 

Lea

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emysemys said:
Hi Lea:

Welcome to the Forum!!

May we know where you are?

Turtles have to be in water in order to swallow their food, just in case you didn't already know that.

Yes, it would be nice to have a light that gives off heat over the area where they bask. It would act like the sun...they climb out and bask to warm up.

It sounds like you're doing much more for these poor turtles than their previous owner. I'm sure they appreciate it.

Thank you :eek:) yeah they have about 12 inches of water to swim in. I have a UVB light in the tank just not a lamp specifically for heat but I think the UVB lets out some heat. I'm in the UK by the way :eek:) x
 

Lea

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Jacqui said:
Welcome!! Glad you have found us. Has the baby's shell become firm,yet? How big size wise are the other two?

Hiya, thanks for the welcome :eek:)

Yeah the baby's shell feels firm. One of the older ones is about 4 inches long in the shell and the other is about 2 and a half inches long, I am a bit confused by this as they are the same age but I don't notice any other differences between them in nails, tail etc :eek:/ x
 

Lea

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Tnewton said:
Personally I dont think they need a basking spot. I have several red eared sliders and african sidenecks and none bask. I do have a doc they can get out and dry off if they want. As long as your water is warm and the food you feed as calciu, and d3 they will digest food just fine. Water to cold, food wont digest and could cause problems

Cool thanks for that :eek:) wow you have lots! How big is your tank? I worry that my tank isn't big enough as it's just the one they were given to me in :eek:/ x
 

Jacqui

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Tnewton said:
Personally I dont think they need a basking spot. I have several red eared sliders and african sidenecks and none bask. I do have a doc they can get out and dry off if they want. As long as your water is warm and the food you feed as calciu, and d3 they will digest food just fine. Water to cold, food wont digest and could cause problems

Sorry, but I am personally going to disagree. They do need to bask. They need to be able to get out of the water to rest (in addition to the resting they do while in the water) and they need to be able to let their shells dry off (unless you are taking them out and manually dry docking them?) otherwise they increase the chance of getting shell rot and other diseases. Plus while basking they are normally warming up and soaking in those critical sunrays.

Then there is always the thing where they look cute with their legs all stretched out basking... just before they realize your there and go scrambling and splish splashing into the water. :cool: :D

A side note... the basking site should be like 10 degrees hotter then the water to encourage them to bask.
 

Lea

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They have a big turtle dock that they spend alot of time on, it doesn't seem to bother them that I'm around. They have the UVB bulb but I don't think they air temp is any warmer than the water. I'm just wary of gettin a heat lamp cos of the three year olds having never had one :-/
 

Tnewton

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You can add a heat lamp not a big deal, out of the 20 or so turtles I have barely any of them will ever bask.


Lea said:
They have a big turtle dock that they spend alot of time on, it doesn't seem to bother them that I'm around. They have the UVB bulb but I don't think they air temp is any warmer than the water. I'm just wary of gettin a heat lamp cos of the three year olds having never had one :-/
 

Cloud 9

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Hi, welcome to the Tortoise forum community Lea! :].
 

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Hi and welcome! Every water turtle needs to get out of the water, bask in the sun and dry off completely. I have raised and rescued water turtles for over thirty years, and never had a one who didn't like to bask in the hot sun. For a hatchling your water temp. should be at least 75 - 78 degrees, so you would need a heater. A good 5.0 UVB is also necessary, and a heat lamp for them to sit under and dry off. A varied diet of turtle pellets, greens, some fruit and veggies. I always put some water plants in the inside tanks for them to munch on too. If you have to keep them inside this is what I would do. Of course there's nothing like a nice pond for outside. If your tank is 100 gal. (I think you said this...too lazy to go up and read your OP) you can have more water that 12 in. Can you post a picture of your tank?
Everyone does things differently, but this is just how I would do it.
 
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