- red-eared sliders need a pelleted commercial diet.
- Commercial turtle treats and freeze-dried krill may be given as treats.
- Non-toxic aquatic plants (anachris, water lettuce), dark leafy vegetables and sliced vegetables such as squash and carrots.
- Comet goldfish, earthworms and insects may be offered as treats.
What human food can a red ear slider turtle eat?
What Can Turtles Eat From Human Food?
- Fish. Turtles love fish. ...
- Meat. Every person that has kept turtles knows that they enjoy eating meat. ...
- Fruits. Giving fruits on a regular basis to your turtles is a great way to improve their overall health and reduce the risk of disease.
- Vegetables. Vegetables should be part of every turtle diet. ...
- Human Foods to Avoid. ...
- Final Thoughts. ...
What kind of vegetables can a red eared slider eat?
Red-eared sliders can be fed dark leafy greens such as romaine lettuce, kale, dandelion greens, turnip greens, mustard greens, or swiss chard. Vegetables such as bell peppers or carrots can also be fed. Fish that can be fed as feeders: goldfish, guppies, and minnows. The insects, worms, slugs, snails, and tadpoles are all related.
What vegetables can the red slider turtle eat?
Plant foods that can be given to the red-eared turtle in limited quantities:
- apricot
- watermelon
- banana
- cherry
- pear
- melon
- zucchini
- kiwi
- Strawberry
- raspberries
Are red eared slider turtles dangerous as pets?
Yes, baby turtles can get shell rot. This fungal infection red eared slider turtle shell rot is very dangerous. When the owner observes the symptoms of shell rot they should immediately contact the local vet and get it treated. How Do You Treat A Red Eared Slider Shell Rot?
What is the best food for red-eared sliders?
A big handful of leafy greens, a pinch of turtle pellets, and a couple worms or insects should be plenty. Adults eat a lot less meat, so make sure you offer plenty of dark leafy greens, vegetables, and aquatic plants. Foods rich in protein, such as fish and invertebrates, should only be offered once a week.
How often should you feed a red-eared slider?
The frequency of feeding depends on the age and size of your red-eared slider. Smaller or juvenile turtles will eat heartily every day. As they get older, adult turtles may be offered a good-sized portion of food every two or three days.
What fruits and vegetables can red-eared slider turtles eat?
Like humans, red-eared sliders are also omnivorous and have a very varied diet. Sliders can eat many types of vegetables- such as green beans, tomatoes, lettuce, kale, and squash- but also a wide range of fruits – skinned apples, bananas, berries, melons, nectarine, and mango.
How much do I feed my red-eared slider?
A good rule of thumb is to feed as much as your turtle will consume in 15 minutes.
How long can a red-eared turtle go without eating?
Healthy adult red-eared sliders can go without food for a few weeks up to two or three months at most.
What foods are poisonous to turtles?
Rhubarb and potato leaves belong to highly toxic food for turtles....Food Avoid to Feed Box turtlesBread, bakery products, and pasta.Candies, chocolate, and other products containing sugars.Processed meat and canned food.Avocado skin and pits.Tobacco leaves and products.Rhubarb.Tomato and potato leaves.Dairy products.More items...
What can red-eared sliders not eat?
Avoid These Red-Eared Slider FoodsFeeder fish.Crickets.Earthworms.Crayfish.Ghost shrimp.Krill.
What can I feed my turtle Besides turtle food?
Animal food sources. Animal-based food sources for turtles can include processed pet foods like drained sardines, turtle pellets, and trout chow. You can also feed them cooked chicken, beef, and turkey. Live prey can include moths, crickets, shrimp, krill, feeder fish, and worms.
How long can red-eared sliders go without water?
The Red Eared Slider is semi-aquatic, just like other turtles. But unlike the rest, it tends to leave the water and bask on land for longer hours. The Red Eared Slider can live without water for up to a week or more.
What vegetables can I feed my red-eared slider?
Leafy Greens: Collard greens, mustard greens, dandelion greens, kale, and bok choy. Iceberg lettuce should never be fed because it is not nutritious enough,1 and dark green leafy lettuce such as romaine can be fed sparingly. Make sure you feed items with appropriate calcium-to-phosphorous levels.
How do you know if a turtle is happy?
Swollen, cloudy, or "weepy" eyes with a discharge are all common signs your turtle is sick. Another very common sign is mouth breathing or straining to breathe. If your turtle looks healthy and is breathing normally, this is a good indicator they're happy.
Do turtles need a light at night?
Night Lights They can also provide some heat, which can be important for hatchling turtles, who often sleep on the basking area at night. Adult turtles don't need night lights, and most turtles don't care whether they're red or blue as long as they're not too bright.
Can you overfeed a turtle?
Don't Overfeed Your Turtle While it's hard to resist, overfeeding a turtle can lead to serious consequences. Coates warns that obesity and hepatic lipidosis (fatty liver disease) are two conditions that are related to overfeeding pet turtles.
Do red-eared sliders need to be in water all the time?
The answer is, yes. Red-eared sliders need to be in the water. For starters, red-eared sliders lack saliva and need water to swallow their food. They can eat without water, it's just a lot more difficult.
Is tap water safe for turtles?
Do not use tap water for your tank, as tap water contains chlorine and possibly fluoride which can upset the pH balance of your system. De-chlorinated water needs to be used for the swimming area and filtered water for your turtle to drink.
Can a red-eared slider eat a banana?
Some experts recommend fresh fruits such as bananas, berries, apples, and melons. However, this isn't a natural staple in the red-eared sliders diet, and it may cause diarrhea. If you offer any fruit at all, limit it to very small quantities as a special treat. Don't feed frozen fish, or at least not very often.
What Red Eared Slider Turtles Eat
Since red eared slider turtles are omnivorous they can eat a huge variety of ailments. So to make things simpler I will divide them in 5 categories:
How to Properly Feed Your Red Eared Slider Turtle
Over the years I’ve read about countless methods of feeding turtles. But out of all of them two stood out the most, as being the most used and the most efficient. And they are the 15 minutes method and the size of the head method.
Red Eared Slider Turtle Feeding Schedule
The first thing that you have to take into consideration when thinking how often you have to feed your turtle, or when making a feeding schedule, is the age of the turtle. Baby red eared slider turtles need a different amount of food than juveniles, and juveniles need a different amount of food than adult red eared slider turtles.
Occasional Treats
Another thing that I want to address is that you can occasionally give your red eared slider turtle treats. As long as they are not too consistent, you can give your turtle a few live fish, fruits, vegetables or dried insects, without worrying that you disturb their feeding schedule.
Final Thoughts
While red eared slider turtles can eat a lot of things, not all of them can be good for them.
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Why do turtles regurgitate food?
Turtles are very smart and quickly learn when it is time to be fed. Turtles and many other animals tend to move slower after eating, so regurgitating food in order to escape more quickly is a common tactic. Red-eared sliders may regurgitate their food if they are handled too soon after eating.
How long should I let my turtle eat?
Any vegetables you feed should first be boiled and chopped into pieces small enough to fit into the turtle’s mouth. Let your turtle have a 15 minute feeding session. After the feeding session, just remove anything that hasn’t been eaten to keep the water clean.
How often should I feed my slider turtle?
Turtles in the wild will eat whenever they can. However, pet sliders should only be fed every two to three days because they do not have to hunt. Many people like to feed their turtles fruit, but they are very high in sugar and can give your turtle diarrhea.
What do red-eared slider turtles eat?
Red-eared slider turtles are omnivores, so they eat both plants and animals. Adults mostly eat aquatic plants such as elodea, duckweed, water lettuce and water ferns. Adults eat so many plants they are considered herbivorous. They will only eat meat if it is readily available and there are no plants nearby.
What to feed a red-eared slider?
Good plants to feed red-eared sliders are dark leafy greens, aquatic plants, and vegetables. Feeder fish, invertebrates, and commercial turtle pellets are good sources of protein. Make sure your turtle is also getting a calcium supplement at least once a week and is not being handled after feeding.
How do red-eared sliders hunt?
Red-eared sliders hunt by either sitting motionless, waiting for a fish to swim by and then snatching it, or by chasing and snapping up any bugs that land in the water. Adults will also swim along the bottom of ponds or lakes and eat aquatic plants or algae.
How often should I feed my turtles?
Adults should be fed a hearty amount of food once every two days. A big handful of leafy greens, a pinch of turtle pellets, and a couple worms or insects should be plenty. Adults eat a lot less meat, so make sure you offer plenty of dark leafy greens, vegetables, and aquatic plants.
What plants can turtles eat?
Some preferable safe water plants for turtles are water lettuce, water hyacinth, Frogbit, Anacharis, duckweed as well as hornwort. These plants don’t ask much to grow. You can keep them in a separate enclosure. they cost little when you buy in bulk. Fruits should only be given to red-eared sliders as a treat.
How to keep turtles from rotting in water?
Try to feed vegetables that float on the water. These types of vegetables are great because your turtle can nibble on them whenever it prefers. Don’t forget to take out the leftover vegetables every day. Otherwise, they will get rotten and destroy the water quality of the turtle tank.
How much protein do baby turtles need?
The first thing you need to do is choose a food that has both protein and vegetable base in it. Hatchlings need about 75% protein and 25% vegetables and the adults need 75% vegetables with 25% protein. Keep in mind that, initially baby turtles need more protein in their food. As they grow up, they need more vegetables eventually.
Why don't red-eared sliders live long?
In most of the cases, red-eared sliders don’t live very long in captivity due to poor diet and feeding. In this article, I’ll talk details about red-eared slider turtle feeding and how to provide them a balanced diet every day.
How long do you bake eggshells for turtles?
If you don’t want to spend money on a calcium bone, then you can make some on your own. Take some eggshells, bake them 30 minutes in the oven at 300 degrees Fahrenheit and grind them in a blender.
Can you feed a turtle fruit?
So, it is better to feed your turtle fruits in a separate bowl or tank. If you have a baby turtle, then it is better to shred the vegetables so they can eat them easily. It is not important for an adult turtle. Fruits are not a natural part of red-eared slider turtles’ diet.
Do turtles need calcium?
Like humans, turtles need calcium in their diet too. Calcium helps to strengthen a turtle’s bone and shell. So, you may wonder how to give turtles calcium as they can’t drink milk as we do. Actually, it is quite straightforward. You can easily buy a turtle calcium bone from any local pet store.
What do red-eared sliders eat?
Commercial turtle treats and freeze-dried krill may be given as treats. Non-toxic aquatic plants (anachris, water lettuce), dark leafy vegetables and sliced vegetables such as squash and carrots. Comet goldfish, earthworms and insects may be offered as treats.
How to clean a turtle's habitat?
Keep the habitat clean and remove uneaten food and feces right away. Thoroughly clean and disinfect the habitat at least once a week: place turtle in a secure habitat; scrub the tank and furnishings with a 3% bleach solution; rinse thoroughly with water, removing all traces of bleach smell.
Where did the red-eared slider originate?
Red-Eared Slider. Originating in North America, the red-eared slider is named for the distinctive red streak on each side of its face. The Red-Eared Slider is primarily aquatic and will emerge from the water for basking.
