SulcataSammy
Member
I have been on this forum for my Sulcata. Only one profile...
I've had a snapper before and successfully kept him 20 years, ending up in a appropriately terraced 55gal tank. Great pet. Been gone for years. Recently I was given a baby snapping turtle in June. I have him in a 10gal tank, with a brick in the middle (plants in the holes) and about 2" of water. A few snails crawl around too. I put a flat rock leaning on the brick for him to hide under. I have a LED light on the top during the daylight hours. When I first got him he ate aggressively worms, bugs etc. The past few weeks he stopped eating. I went to change the water and got him out from under the rock ledge and I thought he was dead. Eyes closed. I ran water over him and cleaned a bit of the algae off him and eventually he swam around, perked up, looks healthy. But won't eat. He scouted around for a couple of days looking normal. Today he is back under the ledge again. Just checked on him and his eyes were closed and he looked dead. Ran some water on him and put him back and he is swimming around happy again. Just took the picture.
Still hasn't eaten anything. He is twice the size of when I got him and appeared to be happy and I hoped he was acclimated to indoor living and would be with me for a long time.
Only things I can think of is...he is trying to hibernate, even though I have not adjusted the light or room temp. ever. Maybe the LED light is messing him up? It isn't ideal. I have small river snails and guppies in the tank with him. Tried everything he loved...worms, wax worms etc. Its possible he might have eaten some of the snails because I have found empty shells, but they are only 1/4 long, so minimal amount of food if he ate them over the weeks? He used to eat like a pig.
Suggestions? I don't remember my first snapper ever hibernating. why he stopped eating has me concerned.
I've had a snapper before and successfully kept him 20 years, ending up in a appropriately terraced 55gal tank. Great pet. Been gone for years. Recently I was given a baby snapping turtle in June. I have him in a 10gal tank, with a brick in the middle (plants in the holes) and about 2" of water. A few snails crawl around too. I put a flat rock leaning on the brick for him to hide under. I have a LED light on the top during the daylight hours. When I first got him he ate aggressively worms, bugs etc. The past few weeks he stopped eating. I went to change the water and got him out from under the rock ledge and I thought he was dead. Eyes closed. I ran water over him and cleaned a bit of the algae off him and eventually he swam around, perked up, looks healthy. But won't eat. He scouted around for a couple of days looking normal. Today he is back under the ledge again. Just checked on him and his eyes were closed and he looked dead. Ran some water on him and put him back and he is swimming around happy again. Just took the picture.
Still hasn't eaten anything. He is twice the size of when I got him and appeared to be happy and I hoped he was acclimated to indoor living and would be with me for a long time.
Only things I can think of is...he is trying to hibernate, even though I have not adjusted the light or room temp. ever. Maybe the LED light is messing him up? It isn't ideal. I have small river snails and guppies in the tank with him. Tried everything he loved...worms, wax worms etc. Its possible he might have eaten some of the snails because I have found empty shells, but they are only 1/4 long, so minimal amount of food if he ate them over the weeks? He used to eat like a pig.
Suggestions? I don't remember my first snapper ever hibernating. why he stopped eating has me concerned.