Water Turtles: care and maintenance of reptiles

Contents:

• What turtles can live at home
• Equips turtle house
• Lighting an aquarium for aquatic turtles
• What's eating reptiles

By accessing the pet store, you can not help stop near the counter, where a small swimming tank funny little water bug, and are increasingly looking to purchase this cute reptile? So, it's time to bring our plans to life! However, before you dare to take such a step, remember - turtles grow quickly. Buy "desyatikopeechnuyu coin", and in a year you live in the apartment reptile that grew up to ten centimeters. And this is not the limit. Will you be ready to continue to place at the adult? If the answer is yes, let's talk about what should be the care of the turtle, to make her feel at home in an aquarium.

What turtles can live in our house?

First, let's understand what the turtle can live next to us. In total, there are three main types of reptiles:

• Bog turtles

Residents of central Russia. They can get into the house directly from their places of habitat. Characterized by a dark color of the shell (the color can range from dark olive to nearly black) and predatory temperament.

• The Central Asian turtle

Large land tortoises can reach dvuhkilogrammovy weight. In nature, these reptiles live in burrows and are not very active. To keep it at home need a very spacious terrarium. Caring for these turtles is regular swimming and shell lubrication oil. As they feed suitable coarse vegetable food: cabbage, carrots, beets and tough grass.

• Krasnouhov aquatic turtle

The most common type, which is most often found in the home. That's about it, we'll talk further.

Equips turtle house

For a small turtle (shell with dimensions of about eight centimeters) requires a standard 55 liter aquarium. But do not forget - turtles grow quite rapidly, so the future can be immediately reserved a larger aquarium. The smaller the space where the turtle lives, the more likely there will have to change the water. Cover for the aquarium is not essential, but desirable.

In order to understand how much water should be in the tank, just look at the tortoise - depth should equal the length of the shell (can be a little more). In order not to change the water too often, can be equipped with an aquarium filter submersible. Only it is important not to forget to change the filter material every month. You can put on the bottom of the aquarium layer of coarse gravel or a place where a few large rocks or snags - it will create in the turtle cottage sections with different depth.

Live plants in the aquarium with turtles do not use, but if you want additional decor - set some artificial twigs. Turtles can use them as an additional shelter. Just make sure that these ornaments had no sharp angles.

You must also create the aquarium small plot of land where the turtle can bask. It's enough to put on the bottom of a wooden snag inclined to some part of it extends above the water. If you have small pieces of ceramic tile, they can be glued together with silicone sealant and do for your pet whole island.

Caring for a turtle and is a mandatory cleaning akvariuma.Uchityvaya that turtles live and defecate in the water, its full replacement should be carried out every three to four weeks (it depends on the size of the tank). At the same time you need to add water regularly. The frequency depends on the amount of sauce in the same aquarium reptiles, and the availability of a filter for water purification. The main polluting factor - falling into the water leftover food. To avoid decomposition of food in the water, experts advise to feed the turtles quickly perishable food outside the aquarium.

Lighting an aquarium for aquatic turtles

It's hard to care for aquatic turtle without a properly sized lighting. These reptiles need two types of lamps:

• UV fluorescent lamp

UV lamps it is necessary, or without UV portion of the turtle does not absorb calcium and die. So young turtles often perish individuals with "soft-shell". This occurs when the blood calcium level decreases reptiles. It is important that the lamp power was 5% (possible). This lamp must be placed at a height of 30 centimeters over the place warm. Over time, the amount of ultraviolet radiation generated by the lamp is reduced, so you should promptly carry out their replacement (about every five or seven months).

• Local coverage

For him, use standard incandescent or if you want you can buy a special reflector lamps in a pet shop. The power of such tubes depend on how high can fix them, and the mean temperature in the room.

What's eating reptiles?

Proper care of a turtle - is primarily properly selected diet. Some pet owners are fed a pelleted feed, but it is wrong! Let's look at what must be present in the menu of your bug. Small carnivorous different individuals, although they can eat a lot of plant and animal feed. In order to meet all their needs in food of animal origin, it is possible to offer them small crickets, earthworms, frozen krill or fry guppies.

A daily diet of aquatic turtles should be: the leaves of cabbage, lettuce, turnip greens, dandelion, all water plants. Sometimes a pet can offer grated carrots or sweet potatoes. Taking into account the taste preferences of the young turtles, do not expect that they are happy to pounce on any proposed plant food - most likely they will ignore it. But that does not relieve you of the obligation to regularly provide their pets green. Then you can be sure, if you want green turtle - it is her will.

Often the owners of reptiles forget the correct vitamin supplements, but it is quite wrong. The easiest way to give the turtle a mineral food - roll it earthworm. To mineral mixture is not washed away, it is better not to put food and stretch out on the tweezers. Should be used to feed any mineral admixture with vitamin D3 and calcium.

If bugs are very small, they can give up to eight pellets of dry food a day, dividing it into two. Or replace 'suhpaek "on the big green leaf lettuce, pre-shredded. Aquatic turtles ingest food, while under water, so they do not need to leave food on the beach, you can just throw it in the water. And not eaten the remains clean after a while.

Little bug first time can be very picky eating habits and give up the pellets. But they just will never be against the live food: moth or Tubifex. So please be patient, as they grow older discerning pet will have a big appetite.

Care bug should bring you joy, but in this case, both will be satisfied: both you and the pet. If you are too busy, and the circumstances do not allow animals must pay attention better to wait with the purchase. Otherwise, the content of the turtle will turn to you in an annoying obligation, which can cause illness and even death pet.

We advise to check: Proper care for aquarium fish