The Puffer Forum

Does anyone know of a freshwater, cold water (small) turtle that could go into a (non-puffer) community tank??

Many years ago I went into a pet store and they had small (aquatic only) turtles in some community tanks for sale..cannot remember the name.

I want to make a bigger community tank and was wondering about adding a turtle.

Are you thinking of "painted" turtles? The ones with the little red (or is it yellow?) eras?

honestly I do not remember the specific coloration of the turtle..but painted turtles are common so that is a possibility..

This morning I went to do research on turtles (I always try to find the answer before i ask LOL)

I found this wonderful website .. http://www.theturtlesource.com/

And to my dismay...there are at least 100 different turtles!

So, i thought maybe someone here would have some info..is there such a thing as a cold water turtle <75 degrees?

I've never seen any turtles or terrapins in cold water >_< and Ive honestly never seen any with any fish either, maybe you have different breeds over there xD UK is always behind! haha.
They're very cute though

Turtles eat fish.

and they need rocks to sit and bask out of the water

Yup, only kind of shallow water and then a basking area, I think that's why I never saw any with fish >_<

They also need a UV light to bask in..ive seen alot of freshwater turtles but not coldwater

It's my understanding that some aquatic turtles under 4" in diameter are illegal to sell in the U.S. I know they are in Missouri, even though you can find them without too much searching at flea markets or via craigslist, and I also think I remember reading that it's a federal law as well. Something about all the salmonella cases kids were getting years back when the law was introduced.

i dont mean to hijack... but quick question... do turtles molt? i saw like 3 turtles at petco today and their skin looked like it was falling off... is that normal? btw, not sure what kind, but they were swimming and looked like red eared sliders

Yes, they do.

oh really? okay... good thing i decided to come home and learn what i was talking about before opening my big mouth and giving them an ear full about their healthy turtles hahahaha... could have made myself look REALLY stupid

That's how they grow, their skin & shells grow underneath & then the top layer sheds off, like a lizard. The scutes of the shell pop off too.

sounds messy okay... thank you sorry for hijacking, back to topic