fish with turtles?
- Thread starter mistercoffee
- Start date
Yes and NO..depends on what you can provide and what kind of fish you would want to keep..very few fish will survive. ADDING to one of your current tanks is NOT an option
Turtles need UVA/UVB light for proper shell growth..reptisun 5.0 is a good choice..this can not be provided by incandescents and can only be provided with special reptile specific bulbs.or maybe some of the SW Reef bulbs but I dont know, either way they are not cheap.
Turtles produce alot of waste..tons..you would need excellent filtration..being unemployeed you may have time to do daily water changes though
Turtles are predators..they will eat fish...they dont care how much they cost they are a food item..even a small turtle will catch and consume bigger fish.
Turtles need space...55G would be ok for a while but not very long... reptiles do not grow to the environment they are kept in..they dont get stunted..they grow to their natural size if cared for properly.. and will grow to a full deformed size if in cramped quaters.
I will skip the somanella speach since you have a bird and they can carry somanella as well.
Also water temp is equally important as ambient temp..you must provide a "warm side" and a "cool side" the best way to do this is overhead incandescent lighting on one side keeping the ambient temps in the high 80's and the other side should be un heated with about a 10 degree lower temp, this gives them the option to which temp range works best for thier basking needs.
I am assuming you are lookng at one of the NA water turtles, if you would be looking at some of the non native species these could change abit.
If any of these are not met you will put the turtle thru a slow agonizing death sentence.
Turtles need UVA/UVB light for proper shell growth..reptisun 5.0 is a good choice..this can not be provided by incandescents and can only be provided with special reptile specific bulbs.or maybe some of the SW Reef bulbs but I dont know, either way they are not cheap.
Turtles produce alot of waste..tons..you would need excellent filtration..being unemployeed you may have time to do daily water changes though
Turtles are predators..they will eat fish...they dont care how much they cost they are a food item..even a small turtle will catch and consume bigger fish.
Turtles need space...55G would be ok for a while but not very long... reptiles do not grow to the environment they are kept in..they dont get stunted..they grow to their natural size if cared for properly.. and will grow to a full deformed size if in cramped quaters.
I will skip the somanella speach since you have a bird and they can carry somanella as well.
Also water temp is equally important as ambient temp..you must provide a "warm side" and a "cool side" the best way to do this is overhead incandescent lighting on one side keeping the ambient temps in the high 80's and the other side should be un heated with about a 10 degree lower temp, this gives them the option to which temp range works best for thier basking needs.
I am assuming you are lookng at one of the NA water turtles, if you would be looking at some of the non native species these could change abit.
If any of these are not met you will put the turtle thru a slow agonizing death sentence.
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NOOOOO..
Turtles need UVA/UVB light for proper shell growth..reptisun 5.0 is a good choice..this can not be provided by incandescents.
Turtles produce alot of waste..tons..you would need excellent filtration..being unemployeed you may have time to do daily water changes though
Turtles are predators..they will eat fish...they dont care how much they cost they are a food item..even a small turtle will catch and consume bigger fish.
Turtles need space...55G would be ok for a while but not very long... reptiles do not grow to the environment they are kept in..they dont get stunted..they grow to their natural size if cared for properly.. and will grow to a full deformed size if in cramped quaters.
I will skip the somanella speach since you have a bird and they can carry somanella as well.
If any of these are not met you will put the turtle thru a slow agonizing death sentence.
Turtles need UVA/UVB light for proper shell growth..reptisun 5.0 is a good choice..this can not be provided by incandescents.
Turtles produce alot of waste..tons..you would need excellent filtration..being unemployeed you may have time to do daily water changes though
Turtles are predators..they will eat fish...they dont care how much they cost they are a food item..even a small turtle will catch and consume bigger fish.
Turtles need space...55G would be ok for a while but not very long... reptiles do not grow to the environment they are kept in..they dont get stunted..they grow to their natural size if cared for properly.. and will grow to a full deformed size if in cramped quaters.
I will skip the somanella speach since you have a bird and they can carry somanella as well.
If any of these are not met you will put the turtle thru a slow agonizing death sentence.
Reading about it online I guess it looks possible but I think we'd be getting into way too much at this point. Maybe when we have a bigger/better place that can support a 75g+. Turtle with fish sounds like a project for way later.
last time I did water turtles they had an outside pond area (using a plastic kiddie pool)..and they came inside for the winter.
It can be a cool project but there are alot that goes into it..unfortunately most petshops are even less informed of the needs of herps than they are of fish.
go to kingsnake.com and surf the forums and breeders there..you will find all the info you need..
I am going to go and edit my post a bit..again..lol
It can be a cool project but there are alot that goes into it..unfortunately most petshops are even less informed of the needs of herps than they are of fish.
go to kingsnake.com and surf the forums and breeders there..you will find all the info you need..
I am going to go and edit my post a bit..again..lol
Sorry, mistercoffee, not to de-rail here, but I like your avatar. I have a claddagh tattoo in addition to my ring, I like them a lot.
As far as the turtle thing goes, I'm no help personally, but I know there was an old thread on here discussing the same thing. You may want to do a search for turtle and see if you can find it. I don't know that it said anything more helpful than what brian said, but it may help for future reference.
As far as the turtle thing goes, I'm no help personally, but I know there was an old thread on here discussing the same thing. You may want to do a search for turtle and see if you can find it. I don't know that it said anything more helpful than what brian said, but it may help for future reference.
Brian, I think you should have defended your statement. Something along the lines of, "Yes, somanella is a lesser known hybrid of the salmonella bacteria, which is often considered benign, but can actually be quite malignant, especially in rising turtle populations." Someone probably would have believed you though. Haha.
Well, glad to hear I've made a believer out of someone. Haha. It actually is pretty amazing to consider the number of places selling these tiny turtles, apparently illegally. The possibility of salmonella just seems like a lot to deal with for a pet that you can't even cuddle with. But, I'm sure that for the people that love them, it's well worth it. I know a lot of my friends don't understand why I like fish so much. Here's a link for anyone who's interested. Sorry to have hi-jacked your post, mistercoffee, but maybe it will help people in the future who are thinking about getting a turtle and browsing who are unaware of the issues involved. Here's the link. Baby Turtles and Children: A Dangerous Combination | The Humane Society of the United States
No need to apologize, you haven't even hi-jacked my thread. Even if you had, it's totally cool. I'm enjoying the discussion. Turtles are illegal? I didn't even know that. I just wish I had a bigger tank! Because the bigger the tank you have the more you can do! Even if it doesn't involve a turtle, hehe.
I think that it's only the one's with shell diameter less than 4" that are illegal. Something like that. I think they're legal, but you have to be "using them for educational purposes", like in a classroom or something. I think that's how a lot of stores get around it. I'm totally with you on the bigger tank. I'm hoping that when I move in a couple years, I'll be able to upgrade to a 125 gallon. Oh, the possibilities!
Ok i am going to help clarify this i bit..under for inches are illegal for sale to those without an research. educational permit. That being said you can buy them of all sizes at most ma and pa stores.. All birds and herps have the possiblility of carrying and passing the salmonella (spelling ok there emman..lol), they assumed children would be more apt to pick up and stick a turtle in there mouth, while salmonella is a very real threat it can easily be prevent with proper hygeine.
Now that doesnt outlaw you from going out into the wild and finding a baby turtle...if thats your thing. In your area Jack there are tons of places to go as i am sure you know.
Just check local laws and regulations. If I was going to get a water turtle I would go with a painted turtle..much more attractive in my opinion than red eared sliders.
EDIT: For those that don't know, a painted turtle is the common names for the species Chrysemys picta.
Now that doesnt outlaw you from going out into the wild and finding a baby turtle...if thats your thing. In your area Jack there are tons of places to go as i am sure you know.
Just check local laws and regulations. If I was going to get a water turtle I would go with a painted turtle..much more attractive in my opinion than red eared sliders.
EDIT: For those that don't know, a painted turtle is the common names for the species Chrysemys picta.
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Thanks for clarifying brian, I tried to say that, but I may not have stated it very well, and I didn't know about the catching them in the wild thing. Good to know. Although I do think it's funny that to presume that in a classroom full of children the turtle won't go in someone's mouth at some point. Oh well. I do understand why the law is there though.
I actually think that the idea of children sucking on a turtle shell is a bit ridiculous, if I recall there were no facts to back up the "law", IMO it would be more likely a child picked up or touched something that was contaminated from a turtle, or uncooked chicken, the list could go on all night..lol., then stuck there hands in there mouth and got sick.
I had a baby painted and a baby red eared in the same tank with all my fish. This was a bunch of years ago when I was in high school. The tank was next to a window so it got actual sun light. (obvious required a lot of attention to keep it clear) I used those suction cup floating island things for land for the turtle and for mud skippers. It was a cool setup for a while....eventually my red tailed catfish ate both the turtles and then died lol