Turtles and small children

[mchong9606]

While I support the idea of not stressing the turtle at all I think there is an opportunity here to engage the kids in the proper care of the turtle. Indeed it's not a dog that they can run around with and scream and for the most part that's fine with playful dogs. Build a suitable indoor enclosure so they observe your new pet, take him out for some gentle touching of the shell, and kids can hand feed your turtle. Angel Carrion has made some great suggestions and please do your best to get your turtle into a proper enclosure. Lots of useful info here and it doesn't have to be expensive to keep your new pet. Good luck!

 

[Vynindis]

I'm kind of new to this but like people said, minimum handling is a must. Handling them really stresses them out from everything I know about turtles. You can touch them once they're comfortable enough that they don't withdraw into their shell when they see hands. When they do it really fast and you hear that air coming out of them, that's bad. They're ducking their head too fast when you hear that which means they're SUPER stressed out.

I hand feed almost everything to mine. They're pretty used to humans and I can pet their heads now. But that took maybe a month of hand feeding and showing them my hands weren't going to pick them up (not often). When I pick them up to take them outside they are real comfortable then now too. Just keep making your turtle used to you and the kids being around it and it shouldn't be too stressed by you. Be patient, let the turtle dictate how much you handle or touch it