Yellow Bellied Slider and Plant Life

MKeim1989 · 09-18-14, 01:10 AM

I know its been a while since I last posted anything at all but the last few months have been extremely trying for more reasons than one. Last May, I lost my little brother to a car accident. Because of this tragedy, I also inadvertently adopted a yellow bellied slider. My brother received this turtle as a gift from my parents and the three of them became three more victims of commercial pet chain misinformation.

Knowing next to nothing about turtles, I did my research and I've fixed a lot of the problems I found with his set up. My question for those more knowledgeable is in regard to plant life. I've read that adult sliders need a lot of plant matter in their diets and I'm wondering if there are any type of aquatic plants that could be planted in the turtle's aquarium that would be fast growing and hardy enough to sustain his herbivore side without him completely obliterating them.

I know next to nothing about aquatic plant life, so any advice in that area is more than welcome. Also, any tips for a new mature yellow bellied slider would be appreciated as well. I also encourage any info on your own setups including substrates you use as I'm curious as to what you guys think is best.

Thanks in advance.

NewHerp293 · 09-18-14, 07:25 AM

Sorry about your loss

pdomensis · 09-18-14, 08:05 AM

I don't know turtles but here's my 2 cents as a plant person. I think the answer to your question would depend on the size of your aquarium. In a 20 or 40 gallon tank, I'd say no. The plants would get trashed. In a large environment though I think some could do well, whether anchored or free floating.

Here's a link to a turtle forum that discusses this Safe Plants for the Planted Turtle Aquarium - Habitats and Equipment - Turtle Forum

I would look at the mature size of those plant species they list. Some get pretty big. Also consider where in the water profile those plants are nataurally found: free floating, completely submerged, or rooted in the soil but mostly emergent. I also noticed some they recommended are designated noxious weeds in my state, so you might consider that too.

smy_749 · 09-18-14, 08:45 AM

duckweed, lots of duckweed

that1guy · 09-18-14, 11:14 AM

I have 4 aquatic turtles, including a YBS and RES(both of which I've had since 2011), I also have a cagles map and midland painted. To answer your question, no there is no plant that can survive and YBS appetite. That being said it is fairly easy to set up a small planted tank with some anacharis which grows very fast and can provide a good cheap food source for you turtle, I use to have one setup myself but got too many animals and ran out of space. Keep in mind though that you still need to mix his greens/veggies up some. I feed mine romaine lettuce, green leaf lettuce, and baby carrots sliced long ways. I get alternate between romaine and green leaf like I will get romaine lettuce on one trip to the store then when it is gone I get green leaf, and offer carrots about once a week. You can offer them greens/veggies every day or every other day. Also it is important to feed them pellets, I use reptomin, alot of people don't like reptomin, they think it has too much protein, and use mazuri. Pellets should be offered no more than once every other day, some people offer them less.

As for substrate, I use to use river rocks, if you use river rocks make sure they are big enough they can't fit in the turtles mouth. I no longer use any substrate because it makes maintenance alot harder, poo gets trapped in the rocks. Some people use play sand, if you use play sand be sure to rinse it real good or else it will cloud up your tank. As I said I don't use and substrate although I do have one large rock and a few floating plastic plants, they are actually hanging plastic plants, in the tank for beneficial bacteria. Also if you shove the plants under your basking platform, if you use a turtle dock like me, it keeps it from sinking under the weight as much. I wrap them in the suction cup rack, and my YBS and RES can both stack up on it without it sinking too much.

Also you should check out turtleforum.com for care sheets, tips and pretty much any info you need. I knew nothing when I adopted my YBS which was my first one and was a rescue, as was my RES, and that website helped me alot.

Doug 351 · 09-18-14, 06:45 PM

IDK.....I caught two yellow bellied baby sliders years back. ..hatchlings...while tube fishing. ..

Those things got so big they outgrew their enclosure and started escaping. ...I came home and found them with dog teeth marks all over their shells....

Point is. ....these turtles never saw a plant in their lives..they only ate a high end balanced turtle food. ....they had a simple drop light for a basking lamp....and a pile of rocks in one end of the aquarium for them to climb on. .....

I have no doubt that if I had wanted to upgrade to a larger aquarium. ... (a few times)....these guys would still be with me and weigh 20lbs.......

So. ...the most important thing I had for them was a good filter....a basking area...and a lamp....

So....yeah. ..take the best care you can for them. ....but I can guarantee. ..diet is the least important part of the care.....IF....you feed a quality turtle food.....

Right now. ....I have a little red-eared slider. ....found him in my backyard. ....it took about a week to train him to pluck his "treats"... (dried shrimp)...out of my fingers. ...

Currently feeding him Zoo Med pellets. ...and I didn't have to train him to recognize that bottle....when I pick it up....he goes nuts.....all he ever thinks about is eating....

Edit: Re-reading this post.....I want to make sure I didn't leave the wrong impression. ..I had the turtles a couple of months after they spent the day as chew toys....and they were fine.....I wound up releasing them back to the wild in an area with all the elements in their favor for survival. .....

MKeim1989 · 09-19-14, 12:01 AM

Thank you all for the advice. I will definitely check out the turtleforum. Its likely that I won't try to plant anything in the turtle tank with what you guys just told me but I was thinking about trying my hand at aquatic gardening anyway so maybe I'll try a planting some in a separate tank. I have an over abundance of aquariums anyway. Its good to know that the diet is not as touchy as some animals I've kept. I'll start throwing in some carrots and romaine. Any other leafy greens that are or aren't okay?

that1guy · 09-19-14, 11:00 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MKeim1989

Any other leafy greens that are or aren't okay?

Again this is info you can get on TF but off the top of my head some that are bad for them is spinach, cabbage, and iceberg lettuce.

Also I have to disagree with Doug351, although he is correct about needing a good filter and basking platform with UVB/UVA light, but diet is very important too. Turtles can live 40-50+ years when feed a healthy diet, feeding them nothing but high protein food(pellets and dried shrimp) will cause health issues and shorten their lifespan drastically, like to 5-10 years. It would be equal to you eating nothing but meat and candy bars everyday. They should be feed pellets no more once every two days, once a day is ok for hatchlings, and only the amount that it would take to fill their head if it was hollow. And treats(dried shrimp/mealworms, live fish/crickets/mealworms) no more than once a week, most people offer them only once every other week or once a month.

But don't just take my advice for it, check out turtleforum and ask people much more experienced than me.

Doug 351 · 09-20-14, 05:16 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by that1guy

Again this is info you can get on TF but off the top of my head some that are bad for them is spinach, cabbage, and iceberg lettuce.

Also I have to disagree with Doug351, although he is correct about needing a good filter and basking platform with UVB/UVA light, but diet is very important too. Turtles can live 40-50+ years when feed a healthy diet, feeding them nothing but high protein food(pellets and dried shrimp) will cause health issues and shorten their lifespan drastically, like to 5-10 years. It would be equal to you eating nothing but meat and candy bars everyday. They should be feed pellets no more once every two days, once a day is ok for hatchlings, and only the amount that it would take to fill their head if it was hollow. And treats(dried shrimp/mealworms, live fish/crickets/mealworms) no more than once a week, most people offer them only once every other week or once a month.

But don't just take my advice for it, check out turtleforum and ask people much more experienced than me.

I don't think we disagree at all. ...which is why I said to take the best care possible. ...and I didn't mean to give the impression that only feeding pellets was the ideal diet....but they can do pretty well on them....

However. ....the best diet in the world won't keep them alive long if they are poorly housed....

that1guy · 09-20-14, 11:05 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Doug 351

I don't think we disagree at all. ...which is why I said to take the best care possible. ...and I didn't mean to give the impression that only feeding pellets was the ideal diet....but they can do pretty well on them....

However. ....the best diet in the world won't keep them alive long if they are poorly housed....

Perhaps it was just a misunderstanding on my part then, my bad.