Find solution
Where to buy a yellow bellied slider?

Turtles, yellow bellied slider & red-eared slider?

  • I have 2 turtles, a yellow bellied slider and a red-eared slider in a 40 gallon aquarium. My red is fresh from the pet store while I caught the yellow some months ago in the wild and is much smaller but has a healthy appetite and based off everything I have read looks as healthy as can be. My questions are: 1. When you talk about 4 inches etc in reference to their size from what points are you measuring....length or widith, just the shell etc? 2. I want to add a few fish (gold fish) to the tank for their enjoyment/food but I am concerned the yellow may have a hard time catching them because of his size...any advice? 3. I also want to add some aquatic plants to my indoor tank and have a good idea on what they would like to have based on what they would get in the wild. However I am no entirely sure which ones would be sustainable in an indoor aquarium or what special provisions I will need to make. I want the plants to offer them a more natural environment but really don't know how to go about it. For example what should I put down for them to dig roots into if they need that, will they grow off my turtles heat/uv lamp...etc any advice at all! 4. I know this may sound ideallistc but I want to have my tank move to being more self sufficient. For example adding enough plants if I can to where the turtles won't eat all of them before they replentish themselves as well as giving the goldfish places to hide and possibly spawn so I will have to add few fish in the future. I am by no means just saying I want to do all this because I don't enjoy taking care of my sliders, but to provide them is a semi-natural habitat.is my goal realistic or is it just too out there? 5. Anything you can possibly think of that I may not be would be appreciated as I am new to having sliders and am still learning. I love having them and want to see them reach that 30 something years old I have heard others talk about

  • Answer:

    1. You are measuring the length of the shell from head to tail. 2. Goldfish are not good feeder fish for turtles. Minnows and guppies are better. The YBS will soon figure it out, especially as you got him from the wild. 3. Totally depends on what plants you choose - ask when you buy. 4. Remember that your turtles (and fish if you get them) will need as much space as possible to swim about in. While some plants are a good idea, too many will over crowd the tank. Also, on this subject, 40 gallons is WAY too small for a RES and YBS. Seriously. 5. There's too much to tell you, so check out this site - it wil tell you all you need to know about turtles: http://www.austinsturtlepage.com/Care/caresheets.htm Hope that helps!

Sean at Yahoo! Answers Visit the source

Was this solution helpful to you?

Other answers

1. length of the shell 2. I would get guppies, because they are slow-swimming fish and will breed on their own. minnows are the next best option. 3. I wouldn't get plants, because turtles are known to uproot and rip apart plants and eat them. you could try weighted plastic plants though. 4. guppies will breed, even with out hiding places, and minnows will breed if you give them hiding places, goldfish are a bad idea because they don't breed until they are 1 foot long. 1 turtle could wreck an entire 40 gallon full of plants in an hour, 2 turtles makes it that much easier. 5. just keep your tank well filtered, keep a good basking spot, make sure their foods have the needed nutrients, feed them vegetables, and buy medications in advance in case a turtle would get sick. good luck. also remember that until a turtle reaches its full grown size, their diet must have large amounts of protein and calcium.

Nicely organized. You give me hope for the next generation of herpetoculturists. 1) Turtles are measured by straight-line shell length (not over the curve). 2) Goldfish are awfully fatty, to say nothing of expensive. Hit the bait shop and load up. If you can get killyfish, you're in great shape. They are tough, cheap, and don't contain the thiaminase that goldfish and other minnows do (so far as I know). Not that I have ever seen a turtle suffering from thiamin deficiency. 3) Plants will be eaten, trampled, and uprooted. It is not really practical to keep them in an aquarium with turtles. 4) It would be "out there" to expect a balanced ecosystem but you can add snails to help clean up the mess and - - maybe -- a few plants in corners if you can keep the turtles from getting at their bases. 5) I knew someone who kept RES well into their 50s. They outlived her.

Related Q & A:

Just Added Q & A:

Find solution

For every problem there is a solution! Proved by Solucija.

  • Got an issue and looking for advice?

  • Ask Solucija to search every corner of the Web for help.

  • Get workable solutions and helpful tips in a moment.

Just ask Solucija about an issue you face and immediately get a list of ready solutions, answers and tips from other Internet users. We always provide the most suitable and complete answer to your question at the top, along with a few good alternatives below.