adopted turtle

[oreo1]

hey guys
i have just taken on the care of a long neck turtle for one of the local schools whilst the kids are on holiday. i was told to turn on the light during normal daylight hours but not to put it over glass as it will not function properly. thing is i was also told that if he is placed in front of a window i will not need the light turned on....this is contradicting information and i thought that glass filtered out all the necessary goodness from the sun anyway??? also, he is to be fed two turtle blocks at every meal, (2 meals a day = 4 turtle blocks a day = 28 turtle blocks a week). this sounds like a lot to me..his shell measures 16 L x 12 W so is of a reasonable size. i may have some other questions later on but thanks for any replys!

 

[Mr.James]

Hey oreo,

Your right about the glass filtering out all the good UV, and it may also make it to hot in there if its a sunny day. So I wouldnt... Unless they have that special green house glass that lets in UV, (I doubt it though..) Lol its a school of course they will give you contradicting information! Its there jobs! LMAO.

As for the meals I'm not sure, because I have never kept a turtle..but If he eats all that maybe its ok..

Good luck!

 

[derekm]

Jimmy27 has covered the glass issue pretty well. In short, no glass between the light and the turtle. As for the food, at that size, I would feed it an amount roughly equal to the size of its head (not including the neck), no more than 2 or 3 times a week. Feed it in water because they find it difficult, if not impossible, to eat out of the water. If you're feeding it in the same tank, replace about 20% to 30% of the water in its tank with fresh water after each feed.

IMO, the turtle also needs more variety than just turtle blocks. My eastern longnecks get a mix of turtle blocks, bloodworms and mysis shrimp and I think I may add even more variety soon. This is probably a long-term issue for the school, however.

There are a few Australian turtle care sheets easily available on the web. Check them out for a range of ideas. You would be doing the turtle a big favour, if you passed those care sheets to the school when it starts again. I don't think they've done anywhere near enough research on turtle keeping!!!

 

[oreo1]

yea i think your right, the school has only covered a grain of salt of information regarding turtle care. all they said to do was - they gave me a sheet of paper to 'explain it all' - to feed twice a day every day (seems a bit much like you said), take him for a stroll in the sun to develop a healthy shell, and to not place the light on top of glass. i did have problems installing the filter as they only briefly said to "add the filter". had no idea wether it gets completely submerged or only partly. figured it out in the end though..also said to add water ager but i stated how i was on tank water so they said not to worry about that then.
it said nothing on replacing water, providing variety of food etc but the turtle blocks are a good size in relation to the head.

his name is Max (apparently cause when he is on his back he looks like a maxibon...hehe) and is very friendly and inquisitive. there are attached images of how i have set up his tank. please, any help on improving this enclosure or anything else is appreciated. seems the school has a lot more to learn, but being a private school you'd think they'd know better.

 

[derekm]

I've just checked out your pictures. The clear and alert eyes suggests that the turtle appears healthy. Water level is about right for the tank size (which could be larger IMO) and slope angle of gravel is also about right.

However, I would have set the tank up with enough area above the waterline so that the turtle can be COMPLETELY out of the water at will. (It's a bit hard to see how much gravel is exposed in the overhead pictures.) About 20% more than the shell size is a good MINIMUM. That little rock in the corner on the paver would have been good when he was a hatchling, but he's way outgrown it now. You probably have enough stuff in the tank so that, if you rearrange it, you can create a reasonably sized dry spot and ramp. Try stacking some of those pavers on top of one another at one end and sloping the ramp up to that. Avoid exposing the sharp edges of the pavers because they will damage the turtle's shell as they climb over it.

Having now seen the filter, I'll definitely stand by my recommendation on 20-30% water changes after each feed (2-3 times a week) and its great that you can do this with tank water. Also, because the tank doesn't have a 'waterfall' type filter, keep an eye out for a 'scum' or 'slick' floating on the surface of the water and skim it out manually if you see any starting to form.

Apart from that, good luck with him, and anything you can do to educate the school about good turtle husbandry would be great!

BTW, I was educated in public schools, my kids were/are educated in public schools, and I see no reason to think that a private school would know better!

 

[oreo1]

thanks a lot for your help derekm.
yea that tank i was given just for the 3 weeks hols. he's usually in a larger tank im told.
are you sure to feed 2-3 times a week?? the lady seemed pretty adament on feeding him everyday...
i remove the scum manually 1hr after each feed.
they also said to take him for a stroll 2-3 times a week minimum. does this sound about right?
and thank you n i will be sure to inform the school on what else should be involved

 

[derekm]

thanks a lot for your help derekm.
yea that tank i was given just for the 3 weeks hols. he's usually in a larger tank im told.
are you sure to feed 2-3 times a week?? the lady seemed pretty adament on feeding him everyday...
i remove the scum manually 1hr after each feed.
they also said to take him for a stroll 2-3 times a week minimum. does this sound about right?
and thank you n i will be sure to inform the school on what else should be involved

Yes, I'm sure about the 2 -3 times a week. I have been keeping my current 2 eastern longnecks which I bought as hatchies for 2.5 years and have taken them gradually from daily feeds to 3 times a week over that time. (Their shell length is currently only about 9cm.) I have no problem with you being sceptical. You should also verify my advice by checking out care sheets on the web and other references in your local library.

Taking him for a stroll for about 10-15 minutes 2 -3 times a week is not a bad idea, but be careful about exposing him to sudden changes of temperature and DON'T TAKE YOUR EYES OFF HIM FOR A SECOND. They're not as slow as you might think and neither are the suburban predators who can take advantage of your momentary inattention. Watch out particularly for magpies, butcher birds and crows if they are in your area!!!

 

[oreo1]

thank you so much. your help is greatly appreciated. turtles dont shed though do they? i cant imagine them shedding so hopefully they dont cuz i wont be prepared for it. i have looked on a few care sheets and printed them out for the school. also noticed feeding every few days causes less detrimental impact to their health than if overfed, so thank you for that

 

[derekm]

turtles dont shed though do they? i cant imagine them shedding so hopefully they dont cuz i wont be prepared for it.

Turtles shed, but in separate pieces more like a lizard, not all in one piece like a snake. I find pieces of shed skin in the water from time to time. However, like snakes, turtles can have bad sheds with bits that don't separate properly. While I haven't experienced this myself, I expect that the snake remedies posted on this forum (cooking oil, inside-out wet pillow case, etc) would work for turtles.

Given that you only have the turtle over the school holidays, I don't think shedding is likely to be a problem.

 

[oreo1]

Thanks again! your very helpful. cant be bothered starting a new thread so ill post in this one. Max had some snot like mucus "stuff" on his nose and side of his mouth just before and it was able to be wiped off. is this signalling the beginning of a cold or is his nose possible leaking mucus or something?

 

[JAS101]

Thanks again! your very helpful. cant be bothered starting a new thread so ill post in this one. Max had some snot like mucus "stuff" on his nose and side of his mouth just before and it was able to be wiped off. is this signalling the beginning of a cold or is his nose possible leaking mucus or something?

it might be parts of its shedding skin ? what foods are u feeding it?

 

[derekm]

Thanks again! your very helpful. cant be bothered starting a new thread so ill post in this one. Max had some snot like mucus "stuff" on his nose and side of his mouth just before and it was able to be wiped off. is this signalling the beginning of a cold or is his nose possible leaking mucus or something?

It doesn't sound like anything my turtles have experienced so I can't help with this one. If it happens again, post a picture and someone may be able to identify the problem (if it even is a problem).

 

[lizardsNturtles]

could be RI ??

 

[m.punja]

nice pics

 

[koalia]

its hard to tell the water depth in the pics but turtles need a large area to swim in and definetly deep enough for them to roll over in as they spend most of there time in the water swimming id dedicate most of the tank for swimming and just make a tower of the bricks with a ramp for him to walk up and bask on the diet they have told u is very worrysome as turtle blocks have very high protein and make them grow to fast which is detrimental to their health also everyday id definetly way to much for a turtle this size and veriety in diet is needed for all the nutrients required. its great the school has give the turtle to someone like you for the holidays that is concerned for its health and is making an effort for him, pass on the information to the school and u will have have made a very big difference to the lil guys life. best of luck

 

[JAS101]

the water is no where near deep enough
>

id be adding a fair bit more water in there

 

[pythonmum]

A teacher at our school wanted to get a turtle because we have a large fish tank with nothing in it. After researching the best practice of turtle keeping, I told them there was no way we were getting one! You are doing well with this one. The school needs to realise that the turtle will eventually need to move to an appropriate pond. That was the sticking point at my school. On the bright side, I now have a MD in my classroom and the boys think I'm a legend.:lol:

 

[derekm]

the water is no where near deep enough
id be adding a fair bit more water in there

I agree, but this enclosure is only a temporary home for the school holidays. Apparently, his permanent enclosure at the school is much larger. With the limited space in this enclosure, more water would mean not enough dry basking area. Judging by the photos, his situation is obviously not ideal, but not too bad temporarily, and almost certainly better than leaving him unattended at the school for a fortnight.