Although not as cuddly as a cat or dog, turtles make wonderful pets. Since turtles can live for decades, make sure you are prepared to make a long-term commitment before buying them. To keep your pet tortoise happy and healthy, provide proper housing and food, and keep its habitat clean. Specific requirements or requirements are different for each species. Therefore, ask the breeder or pet store for instructions on caring for your tortoise.
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Part 1 of 3: Preparing the Right Place to Live
Step 1. As much as possible, place the turtle in the largest cage or aquarium
Keep your turtle in a glass aquarium. As a general idea, the volume of the aquarium that needs to be prepared is 38 liters per 2.5 centimeters of shell length. Keep in mind that the need for shelter space that needs to be prepared will depend on the species of turtle that is kept.
- If you are keeping a young turtle, make sure you find out its size as it matures. Assume that you purchase an aquarium with a volume of 150 liters for a young turtle with a body length of 10 centimeters. If the turtle eventually develops and reaches a length of 30 centimeters, the aquarium is too small to accommodate its size.
- The aquarium should also have a cover to prevent your turtle from escaping.
- In addition, aquatic turtles need areas of water that are deep enough to swim. The height or depth of the water must reach (at least) twice the body length of the turtle.
Step 2. Cover the bottom of the aquarium with peat or soil
Mix wood chips with peat or sand with soil in equal proportions. Place the mixture at the bottom of the tank until it is 5-8 centimeters thick.
Do not cover the bottom of the aquarium with gravel. Turtles can eat small stones and choke
Step 3. Prepare the sunbathing area
Make a higher ground on one side of the aquarium from a mixture of sand and earth or peat and pieces of wood. Pile wide, smooth-surfaced river stones or driftwood on the higher ground. This part or side of the aquarium must remain dry and above the water surface.
- Raise the peat or soil and river rocks so that the slope is not too steep for the turtle to climb.
- Purchase a hide box from a pet supply store and place it in a sunbathing area. Your tortoise will love having a comfortable place to hide.
- Keep in mind that the water depth in the tank must be higher if you are keeping an aquatic turtle. Create a basking area more than twice the length of the turtle's body to ensure that the area is above the water's surface.
Step 4. Put water in the aquarium
You can fill the tank with tap water as long as the water doesn't have a high chlorine content. If you have a shell turtle, make sure the water level is low enough for the turtle to lift its chin above the surface of the water while submerging.
- Shell turtles can sink in deep water. If you keep an aquatic species of turtle, such as the pond terrapin, keep in mind that the water depth must be at least twice the turtle's body length.
- Purchase a chlorine test kit from the internet, a pet supply store, or a home supply store. If the water's chlorine level is above 0, fill the tank with bottled mineral water or purchase a dechlorinating agent from a pet supply store.
Step 5. Use a reptile lamp to warm the basking area
One of the most important parts of caring for and raising a reptile is creating a temperature gradient with a hot side and a cool side. Purchase a reptile lamp with a reflector from a pet supply store. Make sure the product label indicates that the lamp is designed for reptiles. Place a thermometer in the tank and make sure the temperature of the basking area is always between 29 and 32 degrees Celsius.
- If your reptile lamp uses an incandescent lamp, you will also need to purchase a UVA/UVB fluorescent lamp. Ultraviolet light is a source of vitamin D for turtles so they can absorb calcium.
- You will need to turn off the lights at night, but the aquarium temperature should not drop below 16 degrees Celsius. If the air and water temperatures are too cold at night, place the tank on a heating pad and purchase a water heater from a pet supply store.
- It's a good idea to prepare your tank at least two weeks before buying a turtle so you can fine-tune the temperature and other environmental conditions.
Step 6. Install the filter to keep the water clean
Purchase a filter that can hold at least twice the volume of your aquarium. Assume you have an aquatic turtle. You keep it in a 380 liter tank and fill half the tank with water. Since the aquarium has about 190 liters of water, choose a filter designed for a 380 or 570 liter tank.
- When you're at a pet supply store, ask the store clerk for advice on which filter to buy.
- Even if you use a water filter, you will still need to remove feces and other debris from the tank using a net every day. To keep the aquarium water cleaner, feed the turtles in a separate tank.
Step 7. Purchase a smaller spare tank
Having a spare tank will help when you need to move your turtle. In addition, you will also have to clean the aquarium regularly so you need a temporary place to accommodate the turtles.
Because it is only used temporarily, the reserve aquarium does not have to be large. Just make sure your tortoise still has enough room to move around. To keep your tortoise warm, move the heating lamp to the top of the spare tank while it's in use
Part 2 of 3: Feeding the Turtles
Step 1. Purchase a suitable food product for your turtle species
Get canned turtle pellets or food from a pet supply store. Usually, tortoises are kept in need of animal protein and vegetables. Store-bought food usually contains all the nutrients it needs, but you also need to supplement its diet to keep your tortoise healthy.
Step 2. Complete the turtle's diet with fish, invertebrates and vegetables
Buy guppies or minnows, worms, grasshoppers, and crickets, both frozen and live. In addition, cut vegetables such as kale, lettuce, dandelions, and carrots, and serve as a complement to your turtle's diet.
- Change the food given to keep it "interesting". You can give food from the store 1-2 times a week, and homemade food 1-2 times per week when food products from the store are not provided.
- Live fish and insects provide mental stimulation for turtles.
- To prevent choking, cut the vegetables first until they are smaller than the turtle's beak.
Step 3. Feed the turtle 3-4 times per week
Most species of turtles that are kept need to be fed every 2 times a day. However, ask the breeder or pet store clerk about an appropriate feeding schedule. Early morning is a good feeding time because turtles are more active earlier in the day. Keep in mind that determining the amount of food is quite difficult to do and does not have certain standards.
- As an illustration, provide food with an amount that can be finished in five minutes. Observe the turtle the first time you feed it to gauge the right amount. Turtles have an "optimistic" side when it comes to eating and tend to overeat if they have an abundant supply of food.
- If you keep an aquatic turtle, place the food right in the water. Aquatic turtles cannot swallow their food if they are not in water. After five minutes, scoop up any leftover food with a net to keep the aquarium water clean.
- Feed the shell turtles using a bowl, and remove the bowl after five minutes.
Step 4. Add calcium sources to the turtle's diet intermittently
You can buy calcium carbonate powder from the internet and pet supply stores. Sprinkle a small amount of the product on your turtle's diet 1-2 times a week to meet your turtle's calcium needs.
- Turtles need a lot of calcium to keep their shells strong.
- If you have an aquatic turtle, you can also place blocks of calcium carbonate in the water for the turtle to chew on.
Part 3 of 3: Keeping the Tortoise Healthy
Step 1. Check the turtle for signs of disease periodically
Do a quick check every 1-2 days (eg when you feed him). Make sure the skin and shell feel soft and have no marks, blisters, or blemishes. Check for discharge or discoloration of the eyes, nose, and beak, and watch for any unusual changes in behavior.
- In general, turtles are healthy animals. However, turtles are susceptible to infection, malnutrition, and eye problems. If you notice signs of illness, such as a soft, leathery shell, cloudy eyes, or blisters, take your tortoise to an exotic veterinarian with experience in turtle care.
- Search the internet for information about experienced veterinarians in your city, or ask a breeder or pet store for a referral.
Step 2. Use a net to pick up dirt from the aquarium every day
To keep the water clean at all times, collect feces, food scraps, and other debris daily. Make sure you wash your hands after touching the inside of the tank or handling the turtle.
Turtles can carry salmonella bacteria which causes vomiting and diarrhea
Step 3. Test the water's pH, ammonia, nitrite, and nitrate levels every few days
Purchase an aquarium water test kit from a pet supply store or the internet. Make sure the pH of the water is between 6.0 and 8.0, or more or less neutral. The ammonia level of the water must be 0. Meanwhile, the nitrite level must be below 0.5 ppm (parts per million or parts per million) and the nitrate level must not exceed 40 ppm.
Turtles need to drink so it is important that you test and keep the water clean. If the water's pH isn't right, balance it using a neutralizing product or substance that you can buy from a pet supply store. If the water's ammonia, nitrite, or nitrate levels are high, change the water and try a more sophisticated filter product
Step 4. Change 25% of aquarium water weekly
Use a bucket and siphon hose to remove 1/4 of the water from the tank. After that, replace the old water with new water in the same amount.
Water contains beneficial bacteria. If possible, do not change the entire water
Step 5. Clean the water every three weeks
Move the turtles to a spare tank so you can clean the main tank. Save 1/4 to 1/2 of the water from the tank, and remove any excess water, including peat and old soil. After that, scrub stones, hiding boxes, and walls in the aquarium and clean using a mixture of bleach and warm water (1:10 ratio).
- Thoroughly rinse the aquarium and accessories, and make sure you remove any remaining bleach solution. After thoroughly rinsing, put the accessory back in the tank and add water.
- Make sure you wash your hands and disinfect the sink or tub after cleaning the tank. Keep in mind that turtles carry germs that can cause disease in humans.
Tips
- Don't forget to always wash your hands after handling turtles and touching the inside or cleaning the tank.
- The specific care instructions to follow will depend on the turtle species. Therefore, ask about the exact requirements or needs of the breeder or pet store clerk.
