How Does a Terrarium Simulate a Turtles Natural Environment?

Water

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A terrarium can simulate a turtle's favorite environment by allowing the user to create both land and water areas for their turtle's good health and happiness. Once the pet owner has selected a Plexiglas terrarium large enough for the turtles mature size, she can simulate a turtle's natural environment by layering in a pond. A proper turtle terrarium will have a pond big enough for a turtle to swim freely. Some salt will be added to help fight bacteria and maintain the turtle's health. In a natural environment, turtles love the water and spend a great deal of their time there. So a turtle terrarium must have a water feature, preferably with a filter.

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Turtles love to bask on the land near their pond, so creating a nice area of wood and stone for them to crawl out of the pond and dry off is necessary. A slanting piece of terrarium "furniture" should be placed in the pond to provide a ramp for smaller turtles to crawl in and out of the pond. In nature, turtles love to pile up on logs alongside their ponds or in the middle of their areas, so terrariums can simulate that by offering the turtle several options for where to relax out of the water.

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Heating or basking lights are a part of a turtle terrarium that helps simulate the natural environment a turtle would enjoy while they lie on the wood or rocks alongside their water area. Ultra violet lights are also used in turtle terrariums for their calcium metabolization.

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Turtles love to explore their environment, and are curious by nature, so putting some plants (non poisonous) in a turtle terrarium helps to simulate their natural living areas and provides them with some things to explore and rest under and around. Turtles may chew the plants, so making sure the plants are not poisonous is extremely important

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Most turtle terrariums feature hollowed-out log "furniture" for the turtle to take shelter under. Turtles, like all animals need to feel secure and in nature sleep and rest under logs and in niches in the rocks. A turtle terrarium simulates this by providing the shelter so that the enclosed turtle doesn't feel stressed in his tank. Placing the terrarium in a corner with indirect lighting also helps to provide a peaceful environment for the pet.