Turtle Rescue League Care Sheet

Turtle Rescue League Care Sheet

Red-Eared Slider

TrachemysScriptaElegans

Basic Needs: The red-eared slider (RES) is an aquatic turtle, which means it lives primarily in the water. There are two basic types of aquatic turtles, basking turtles and bottom walking turtles. This is a simple way of categorizing the needs of your turtle. The RES is a basking turtle, which means it needs a large and deep swimming area, minimized dry area (often being a floating platform), UV (full spectrum) daylight, a heat lamp for basking, filtration for clean water, and a balanced diet. Don’t worry if some of these needs are confusing, I will define each of them in turn.

Water Area (Tanks, Temps, Depths, and More!): For perfect housing, there is a golden rule for determining tank size; for every inch your turtles shell is long (in a straight line from front to back not going along the curve), it needs 10 gallons of tank. This rule works for most basking turtles and if you want to buy as few tanks as possible know how large your turtle will become before buying. We understand not everyone can buy the 75 to 100 gallon tanks a full-grown adult RES would love; however, we can suggest some reasonable sizes. For a smaller size turtle, you can use a 40 to 50 gallon tank and an adult a 65 gallon. Much less than that and it will be like a prison cell to your turtle.

Fill your tank half to three-quarters of the way up with water. Your turtle will love to bask so make sure the level of the water does not pose an escape opportunity for your turtle. If your turtle is tall enough when standing on his or her basking platform to reach the rim of the tank, they CAN escape. You can build or buy a tank topper that allows you to fill the tank higher without this risk. Your water temperature should be between 72 and 78 degrees. If you have a cold house, this means using an aquarium heater. Having an in tank thermometer helps to keep your temperatures good. If your water smells like a pool and you think it is chlorinated in any way, there are water treatments for turtle available online and at pet stores, (Repti-Safe is a good one.)

Dry Zone (Providing a basking turtle with what it loves!): Your RES will need a platform to leave the water and dry off on. There are plenty of inexpensive and well-designed products available (Turtle Dock, Turtle Station, TurtleIsland, etc.), but essentially what you need is a platform, strong enough to hold your turtle safely and large enough to be completely out of the water, and with enough traction so the turtle can ascend the ramp to get up there. Basking turtles will spend up to 8 hours a day lying in the sun; a good platform will keep them healthy and happy.

Lighting* (*Ultra important, but it doesn’t need to be confusing): Your turtle is a reptile and needs UVA and UVB light to digest food and grow. This is essentially sunlight, but having your tank near a window will not do. UV LIGHT DOES NOT TRAVEL WELL THROUGH GLASS. Do not skimp on this your turtle needs this to live a long and healthy life. Buy a tube florescent full spectrum UV bulb, like a ReptiSun 5.0. Though you need to buy a larger fixture for this style bulb, it is much healthier for your turtle than the compact florescent light (curly-Q bulbs). The CFL bulbs have been linked to blindness in pet turtles. NOTE: UV bulbs have a limited life, some only six months, and most about a year. Even if your bulb is still lighting up, doesn’t mean it is producing UV. Replace your bulb when the manufacture suggests. Offer your turtle a 12 to 14 hour day cycle (turtle do sleep at night.)

Now if you purchased a good full spectrum bulb, you can save some money on your basking area light. You will need a heat source (which can be a 40-watt incandescent bulb) in a clamp on reflector light aimed over the basking platform. Use a thermometer to measure how hot the platform gets, you want to see 90 to 100 degrees. You can leave this light on for 8 to 10 hours a day, giving the turtle time to dry off when it wants. Turtles can be shy, so try not to hover too close to the tank when offering the basking light or they might not leave the water.

Filtration (cleanliness and saving yourself a lot of work): If you are going to splurge on an item, this is a good one. The better your filter the less time you will spend on cleaning your tank. For turtles, you should always choose a filter rated for twice the amount of water as the tank it is in. If you have a 60-gallon tank, only half filled, you should still be looking for a filter that can handle 120 gallons. Turtles are messy eaters and epic poopers; unless you like daily water changes, go big!

Diet (turtles love to beg, so keep to a plan): Turtles do not need to eat daily like cats and dogs. The only time a turtle should be fed daily is when it is newly hatched and for the first months of life. Your medium to full size RES only need a feeding once every two to three days. A good pellet food for aquatic turtles like Mazuri Aquatic Turtle Chow orZoo Med Turtle Sticks should be a staple of a feeding. However, as an occasional treat, you can substitute a pellet feeding for some live food. This can be red wiggler worms, crickets, minnows (not goldfish), mealworms, etc. Turtles are hunters, and this brings excitement to their days.

RES become more herbivorous as they get older, so veggies should be a part of their diets. You can offer green leaf/red leaf/romaine lettuce, daily. It is hard to overdue greens, so if your turtle is begging and it isn’t a feed day offer them a leaf to chew on. Here are a few other good choices, collard greens, mustard greens, dandelion greens, kale, turnip greens, and occasionally spinach.

Offer your turtle a banquet block or calciumblock every so often. Turtles always need calcium and chewing on a block keeps their beaks in shape. You can offer your turtle fruits as a treat. Anything that is a treat should be offered only once per week. Some turtle friendly fruits are strawberries, blueberries, raspberries, melon, apple, and banana.

Extras (though not necessary, these things will make your life easier): Timers top our list of suggestions. Your turtles will never miss any daytime or basking time, even if you are sleeping late or are away for a few days. A timer will make your life so much easier. For what they cost I consider them a must have!

Instant read thermometers or infrared thermometers can be a bit expensive, but invaluable for dialing in things like basking area temperature or water temperatures after a tank filling. There are a number of siphon draining kits to make tank cleanings much easier and quicker. A fine fish net can be greatly helpful in skimming unwanted debris from your tank (like uneaten, but shredded lettuce, and poop).

Finally the internet, this is a basic care sheet and there is constant research being done on the best turtle care. Joining an online turtle group, like is a great way to learn from other experienced turtle keepers how to best care for your friend.