I got my turtle enclosure done today.

[Carolinagirl]

These turtles had to live in a stock tank for a week, but today I got their pen finished up. Well, all except for the mulch. They seem really happy in their new pond! I love these things...they are pretty darn big too.

[Lilylady]

They will be happy campers. How many do you have?

[Kntry]

Are they Red Ear Sliders? Where did you get them?

How deep did you bury the wire? It needs to be at least 1'.

[tranquility]

Wow I didn't know you had turtles....we are always finding the babies around here....you have to be careful not to step on them this time of year--they are usually only about the size of a quarter.....love the pond...
Lawanna

[Carolinagirl]

These are a mated pair of Florida Red Belly turtles. Unlike sliders, they are vegetarians (except then they are hatchlings). The people who had the koi I rescued had them for 10 years and gave them to me. She said they lay eggs and hatch out babies every year. I don't have the wire buried, but I do have wire flat on the ground that's attached to the side wire. Plus the landscape fabric staked down on top of the wire and it's so tough they can't burrow through it. That's pretty much how the people I got them from had them contained. They said they mostly stay in the water or basking, unless the female leaves to lay eggs. In the wild, the female lays her eggs in alligator egg mounds because it's warm. they like to lay their eggs in something warm. I bought 8 bags of shredded hardwood mulch and two bags of mushroom compost so I'll cover the yard with the mulch and make it around 2' deep near the wood fence and mix in the compost in that area to simulate an alligator mound.

[koikeepr]

wow! cool!

[Luvmypond]

That is cool.

[addy1]

We have wild ones that wander by all the time, didn't see them much last summer but it was dry and hot. Love the enclosure, your turtles are happy!

[tranquility]

that is just too kewl....

[Carolinagirl]

Babies!! Aren't they adorable?? This is pretty cool. The lady who I got the turtles from called me Saturday. She found 5 hatchlings and wondered if I'd take them. Of course I said yes! The eggs were laid last year but sometimes if cold weather is coming, the babies don't come out of the ground....they just stay in the nest underground and come up in the spring. That's what happened with these 5 little bitty turtles.

[tranquility]

OMG...a handful of cuteness....

[Meganne]

each shell pattern is just a little different!

[stroppy]

how difficult are these little fellows to keep and do they need a large pond ? i think i would love to have some :0) thats if you can get them in the uk i use to have a tortoise when i was a kid he was very friendly ... its against the law to import them here now, so have to be bred here, but that makes them so expensive to buy ... dont have the room for pets in the garden but hopefully terrapins wouldnt take up too much space :0)

[Carolinagirl]

Stroppy, once they get bigger and can go outside, they are much easier to keep. The pond they are in is maybe 800 gallons and has a bottom drain so keeping it clean will be a breeze. This type of pond turtle is vegetarian, but many (most) pond turtles are omnivorous and some are carnivorous. When these are little, they eat a variety of veggies and meat (bugs, small fish, fish food) so keeping their water clean can be a real chore. It's illegal to sell hatchlings like this in the United States because of the potential for salmonella (from their decaying food....not the turtles themselves). You can keep them in an aquarium with excellent filtration. Right now I have them in a rubbermaid tote with a flat rock in it and only 1" of water. Once they get a little bigger I'll give them deeper water. I have a UV light for them that I turn on in the morning so they can warm up and bask in the UV rays. They need that to digest their food and to stay healthy. This summer, I'll make an outdoor place for them with a filter on it so keeping them healthy will be easier.

[stroppy]

thank you carolinagirl for your help .. im going to get a pair i have an aquarium thats been sitting empty, so i could keep them in there for now and see about building something outside when they get bigger ... have plenty of room in our indoor pool room and its nice and warm in there for them ;0)

[Will]

Jumping Jehosaphat! I can blearily see another project looming on the horizon. My family keeps saying that we'll have more water than land before I'm through. I do love turtles, though, and herbivorous ones would be really cool.

[Carolinagirl]

Jumping Jehosaphat! I can blearily see another project looming on the horizon. My family keeps saying that we'll have more water than land before I'm through. I do love turtles, though, and herbivorous ones would be really cool.

Want one? :big smile:

[PaNancy]

OMG!!!! Cindy they are TOO CUTE! Hmmmm....... Now I WANT turtles. :lol: We actually had a pair of turtles when my two girls were little. Red Eared Sliders. Teddy and Tina, had them for 10 years. I got tired of taking care of them. (they were inside) so found them a new home.

My little pond would be perfect for them. :big smile: Yeah like my dh would take that chore on. :gah:

[Serenae]

Oh man if I lived in the States I'd so get one from you! You've made them such a nice home.

Stupid question - do they stay outside in the winter?

[Will]

Want one? :big smile:

Sure do. Just need to prep an environment. I'm wondering about two? I nwonder if they could be sexed to a mating pair... Thanks, BTW, Cindy. I'll give you a call when I can think about coming down. Too damned busy right now.