HELP

[turtlechick]

Hello everyone I have never posted here before but I have a couple questions that maybe you all could help me with.

1. I have a yellow belly sliders and I bought him a feeder fish and when i first put the fish in his tank he cashed it around but then now doesnt seem to want it at all. Dont turtles eat fish the fish is super small so maybe it has to grow?? IDk i never feed my turtle a fish before.

2. I also have a gulf coast boxed turtle and was wondering if i should feed her worms? melworms? or want cuz she already ever eats any of the friut mix i give her.

any answers would be great thanks 

[Charlie98]

Hello and... 

Don't take the fish personally, we put feeder fish in for our Cooter and Red Eared Slider over a year and a half ago and they are still safely swimming around with the turtles.  Go figure...    There are other food options as simple as pellets (ReptoMin is the brand I use) and approved veggies.  Truthfully, a turtle's diet should be around 50% veggies anyway... so keep that in mind.  There are topical 'stickies' here at HTP that will guide you (as they did me!) on what would be best for your turtle!  ...so take a peek at those and let us know if you have any questions.

The boxie question I will leave for one of the other members familiar with the boxie diet.... 

Good luck!  Oh, and we love pictures, too!  What is your yellow-belly's name?

[mkeys]

My turtle chases the fish around too but I am not sure if he has ever caught any.

It is hard to keep track as they have babies often and the population seems to be always changing. I suspect he must have caught at least some by now just because the population hasnt grown that much.

[BKrazyH]

 

If you have another tank to put the fish in for a couple of weeks then put it back in the turtle tank, that may pique the turtle's interest. My turtle eats about one fish every 6 months. I think they do those things just to drive us insane.

Along with the sticky topics (those at the top of every section) we also have a land turtle section. You can find feeding info for your boxie there. I suggest you read all the sticky topics and even as many of the older posts you can. You can also visit our site for Basic Turtle Care. Be sure to check out all the sections.

[DebbieB]

 

Like everyone said they do this to drive us insane.  Mine will go crazy and eat fish then go months ignorng them.  One time I had a guppy that lasted for 2 1/2 years and got to be over 2 inches long and then was invited to dinner one day.  You just never know.  When you say feeder fish do you mean guppy or minnow?  Goldfish are real fatty and not good for turtles.

[Ramenuzumaki]

my Panyk is even more lazy than your little turtle. he will look at his fish go "om nom nom. i will eat you!" kick his feet twice and say "oh well too much work" and then go bask LOL
just give him time :3
some people hold onto their feeders with tweezers so their turtle-dort doesnt hafta chase the little bugger
another nice alternative is Ramshorn snails
their shell is relatively weak and your little bugger should be able to eat it
if your turtle is smart like Panyk he/she will be able to eat the snail without eating the shell LOL
then you just leave the shell in the tank and let dissolve
by letting the shell dissolve in the tank it puts some extra calcium in the tank which is very helpful for your turtle shell

as for your boxie if it doesnt like the fruits you are giving it
you could try strawberries, squash, or even a nice cherry tomato
i dont think fruit are very good for them though since they are FULL of sugar
im not sure if its the same for boxies but thats how it is for aquatic turtles

box turtles are land lubbers like tortoises so you could try a bit of squash since tortoises seem to love it
ive also seen a tortois to NUTS for some cherry tomatos :3

i hope i helped a bit! i didnt read the other posts since its 7AM and i just woke up and they were too big so im sorry if i repeated anything :(

 

[mkeys]

Sugar is not a big concern for land turtles like it is for aquatic turtles.

[Ramenuzumaki]

oh i didnt know that
is there any particular reason?

[XShido]

yep, turts dont do well on sugar.
read this post about what and how frequent to feed turts
http://www.happyturtlespub.org/smf/index.php?topic=16302.0

and this is the line concerning to sugar and fruits. remember this is for Acuatic turtles, about boxie i dont know to be honest if the same restrictions apply.
but, i have seen tortoises eat a lot of fruits, like a fruit mix basket, meat like jam and others. i dont know either if box turtles are to be threated as tortoises :D

Fruits to feed your turtle:

Fruits should ALWAYS be fed in moderation, and should be a rare treat (every 2-3 months!) rather than an every-day staple food, since Turtles have a hard time processing sugar.

*Cantaloupe
*Melon
*Mango
*Papaya
*Pear pads
*Tomato(e)
*Strawberries
*Grapes

Always wash everything thoroughly, before feeding it to your turt.  Feed veggies and fruit raw as often as possible, since it provides the most nutrition and vitamins that way.

[turtlechick]

Thanks for everyones reply! My yellow belly sliders name is Spunky and my gulf coast boxie is Shellie. I normally just feed Spunky the turtle bits from HBH he seems to love those the most but I just wanted to give him alittle treat lol so i thought the feeder fish would be a great idea. But the fish is still alive its hasnt been 24 hours yet since i put the fish in there so im jst going to give it some more time. Ill be posting pics of him and my boxie asap so everyone may see them. As for my boxie i feed her the box turtle food you buy at petsmarts that is in a can but she only eats that about once a month....does any one know how offten she should be eating and how offten she should be drinking water. i pick her up and put her in her dish everyother day just so i know she is getting some water but she never seems to move on her own unless i take her out of her cage compeltely.

[XShido]

we need pics of your setup and turts so we can tell more exactly :p

[BKrazyH]

You'll want to post your boxie questions in the land turtle and tortoise area. You'll get better answers that way.

For both the aquatic and the boxie, pellets should NOT be the mainstay of their diet. If you'll read the sticky topics (those at the top of each section), especially those on feeding, you'll get a better idea of a proper diet.

Your boxie should be eating a LOT of veggies.

[yurdle da turtle]

Wow it was nice to read that some of you are the same as us, Yurdle has shared her tank with fish (guppies) since we have had her. We thought she would eat them too, but she plays with them, chases them and swims right on passed them LOL. The only way she will eat one is if we put it in front of her face!

So don't worry guess some turtles are just like that!