How often should I feed my aquatic turtle and how much food?

Thanks for reaching out about Tutu. Turtles should be fed only a few pellets 2-3 times daily. But chopped vegetables should also be offered daily. Whole prey, as in fish, are also part of the diet of aquatic turtles and can provide a wide variety of vitamins and minerals. Good luck.

Juvenile sliders should be fed daily. Feed an amount equal to the size of his head or as much as he will eat in 10-15 minutes. Adult sliders can be fed every other day or even every third day. The same general guidelines stated above can be applied to feeding adults. Adult sliders are more herbivorous than juvenile, so you should feed more fresh chopped greens and vegetables than prey items. You can offer greens to juvenile sliders as well. You can vary the diets you have pictures to keep him interested in different foods.

The trick is to feed them only as much as they need, and will eat, because any uneaten food will tend to dirty their water. A good rule of thumb is to offer your slider an amount of pellets that is roughly equal to the size of their head once every other day. Commercially available pellets should be the staple of your slider’s diet. They’re specially formulated to meet all the dietary needs, and can be supplemented with a variety of different foods. Feed him an assortment of fruits, vegetables, and proteins two or three times per week. Adult RES need more plant material than protein. If you’re providing him with an age-appropriate commercial feed, along with assorted proteins, leafy greens, fruits, and vegetables, you need not worry so much about the details of what you’re feeding him. The emphasis here is on variety. So long as his diet is varied and he is eating plenty of plant matter, he will have all the nutrients he needs to be healthy. Some foods, however, should be avoided.

A bit depends on how old Mika is but she appears young from your pictures. Feed every day and remove uneaten food after a few minutes that she doesn't eat. She should get about 45-50 veggies, 25% animal protein (feeder fish or worms) and 25% pelleted diet. If she is active and eating that is a good sign for health. Make sure no white patches or soft spots on her shell. Keep water quality good in her tank, make sure she has areas to get out of the water and bask and full spectrum UV lighting. Here is a great article on RES care, with specific parameters. http://www.anapsid.org/reslider.html

Offer a varied diet including pelleted food, fresh greens and prey such as tiny crickets or earthworms. You can get prey from the pet store, do not feed wild caught insects. It may take a day or two for him to acclimate to his new environment. Keep offering fresh food daily. Be sure environmental parameters are appropriate for the species of turtle you have. This includes adequate heat, UVB lighting and water quality. If you know the species, post it in a new question or request a consultation for more detailed care information.

It looks like a juvenile slider. Ideally, a wild turtle should be returned to the area where found. They don't transition well to captivity Since it is a juvenile , you may have a better chance though. You can read about slider care here: http://www.anapsid.org/reslider.html You can feed a commercial pellet or stick diet supplemented with fresh greens and some protein in the form of crickets, feeder fish or nightcrawlers. The water should be no deeper than twice the length of the shell and should be heated and filtered. Provide a heat lamp and UVB lighting.

Hi. I'm glad you checked. Red rated sliders can be fun pets but they also require specialized environment and care. She should eat some live feeder fish, some plant matter and only about 25% of her diet should be commercial pellets. Be sure she has an area to get out of the water in her tank, she needs a basking light for warmth and full spectrum UV lighting. Housing is the number one reason that sliders get sick or die in captivity so please take the time to get her set up correctly. Here is a great beginner article for RES care. http://www.anapsid.org/reslider.html

Check the water temp, ambient temp and basking temp. Low temps can affect appetite in turtles. Maintain pristine water quality and make sure any food offered is small enough for her to eat. Feed her in the water and remove any uneaten food to prevent fouling the water.

Feeding soft shelled turtles is not difficult, adults are carnivorous and feed on a wide range of fish, mollusks, insects, amphibians and even carrion in the wild. If it swims or crawls, an animal is at risk for a soft-shelled turtle’s lay-and-wait hunting strategy. These turtles are not picky. Feeder minnows and goldfish, earthworms and night crawlers, waxworms, crickets and even frozen-thawed (size appropriate) rodents can be offered to pet soft-shelled turtles.

Thanks for reaching out about Zero. The specific species will determine much, but has not been provided. Most aquatic turtles are predominantly carnivorous and will eat a wide variety of insects but should also have nutritional exposure to small fish (for calcium). The will occasionally graze off aquatic lettuces so offering a chopped variety of vegetables could be beneficial. Some aquatic turtles can be sexed by long front fingernails but this is usually later in life. Size is dependent on multiple factors such as nutrition, genetics and other things. Good luck.