Care of Aquatic Turtles As Pets

Series Summary

Turtles might not be the high-energy pets that cats and dogs are, but they require just as much care in their environment and diet. Turtles are among the oldest reptile species, and when cared for properly, a turtle can have a very long lifespan. With their cute little heads, colorful shells and calm disposition, turtles are a great pet for the individual that likes to see nature at its calmest. However, don't assume that all turtles are docile! Some, such as the snapping turtle, are carnivorous and can have quite a bite. There are many different species of turtles, and all of them have unique characteristics and needs. So, before rushing to a pet store or adopting a wild turtle, make sure to do proper research. In this free video series, learn how to care for pet turtles. Expert, Tim Cole, is the owner of Austin Reptile Service, an organization dedicated to the conservation of native Texas reptiles through education. With his help, discover how to properly care for box turtles, long-neck turtles, snapping turtles, desert turtles, and painted turtles. Cole discusses the diet considerations for turtles. Also, learn how to build the perfect habitat for pet turtles. Get tips for identifying male and female turtles, and learn to identify common turtle diseases. If a pet turtle sounds alluring, keep them healthy and happy with these tips.

Video Transcript

"Hi, I'm Tim Cole with Austin Reptile service and I've been keeping reptiles and amphibians for over forty years. We're here to talk about keeping turtles. In front of me is an outdoor pond set up with yellow belly sliders, Texas cooters and red eared sliders. We have a filter on this pond that helps keep the water clean. The sliders do get big and they do require outdoor ponds, they just don't make aquariums big enough for these turtles. Quite often the red eared sliders are sold as babies as turtle pets in a variety of pet stores or flea markets and to be honest with you, these don't make good pets. They get fairly large. This one is an adult female and it doesn't take them very long to get this big. You'll notice that the turtle will bite, these are not what I would call pets. Turtles are an animal that should be set up and left alone, they don't like to be handled. Doesn't matter what kind of turtle it is, they do not like to be handled, okay? Now the sliders are primarily herbivores so they're eating plants, when they're younger they'll eat insects and fish. So you can give them a varieties of foods. So I would encourage you to go with different species of turtles for pets, such as mud turtles, musk turtles, map turtles, painted turtles, they make much better pets because they don't get as big."