Little Turtles at pet shops

[biguebs]

If you want "smaller" turtles, then look at map turtles. You could house a few of them in a 55 gal for life with no problems. But, as with any aquarium animal/fish, you should give them as much room as you can afford to.

If you get into sliders or cooters, than they will get larger and need a lot more room down the road. Good thing about (most) turtles is that they grow relatively slowly compared to fish, so there is time to prepare and upgrade as needed.

 

[Natalie]

I want to reiterate the 10g of swimming water per inch of turtle shell rule. I have one of the smallest aquatic turtle species, a loggerhead musk. He's a 2" juvenile in a 1/2 full 40g (so he swims in 20 gallons). Once he's full-grown at 4-5", he'll need 40-50 gallons of water. A 30 gallon tank is simply not fair for a full-grown mud or musk, because you need to still provide a space at the top for out-of-water basking. So just keep in mind that there is no real small setup for an aquatic turtle pet. You're looking at at least 40+ gallons, probably larger.

 

[biguebs]

I have 8 turtles in my tanks right now,3 Juvenile: map, slider, and snapping turtle in my 55 gal, and 5 babies in my 40 gal. The babies will all stay under 5 inches and they are western and southern painted turtles, 2 western and 2 southern, try to find males they are smaller... i also have a baby fla softshell in the tank but he will be moved to my pond in due time...good luck

Take that snapper out of there! Lol. Even if they get along now, the snapper will eventually seriously injure or kill the others! Many have tried this experiment and lost. Plus, the other two species in that tank would prefer water as deep as possible. Snappers, while they can swim if necessary, prefer to be in much shallower water levels.

You have a good turtle collection though! I really dig western/southern painteds. But if you have a female in there, don't count on them staying under 5".

 

[reptileguy2727]

A pet shop could sell them to teachers, that is a bona fide educational purpose. In most cases a sign on the tank and a signed contract stating the law or 'for educational or scientific purposes only' may be enough to keep stores out of trouble. If they don't ask the purpose it is a gray area issue. If they still sell them when the person says it is going to be a pet or for their kid there is no gray area in that IMO.

 

[redtailcatfreak]

If u want small get a mud turtle. The largest ive ever seen is 4" long. I find them all the time and catch them fishing every once in awhile. The smallest ive ever found was the size of a dime!!! No joke.

 

[redtailcatfreak]

hahaha sorry didnt realize the pic was that big. my bad

 

[Wiggles92]

hahaha sorry didnt realize the pic was that big. my bad

That turtle shows up bigger in the picture than how big it would be in person.

 

[fhawk362]

The thing is those musk turtles arent very attractive... But if you just like turtles and want one in a small enclosure snatch one up

 

[methos75]

The thing is those musk turtles arent very attractive... But if you just like turtles and want one in a small enclosure snatch one up

Some are, the Striped Mud Turtle IMO is a very very attractive little turtle