# What should i put in 10 gallon...



## Xemisions (Apr 26, 2005)

I have always wanted a turtle...But dont know that much about how to keep them..Would a painted turtle do good in a 10? Or what would be a fun exotic turtle? Just throw out some ideas for me if you could...Thanks

And are painted turtles completly underwater or would i have to build up a place for him to live in?


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## Xemisions (Apr 26, 2005)

Mabye some turtle of some type...Or what fun pet would go good in a 10 gallon?


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## "qickshot" (Apr 19, 2005)

i got mine in a 20 long but thats until i get my new p but he is cool put a peice of wood in there so he can climb on. he is the best thing ever dude. he eats everthing from flakes to pellets to fish he catches in the tank to worms to my FINGER. lol he bite me i wouldnt sell him for 50 bucks here is a pic of him. if you want more let me know. i was takin a shot of the p and he was infront i can get some good pics if you want


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## Xemisions (Apr 26, 2005)

I like him alot...are these turtles hard to keep? What kind of tankmats? What kind of filtration? Does it need a heater? What all should I feed it? I mean does it catch comets? That would be awesome!


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## piranha_guy_dan (Oct 4, 2004)

wouldnt this be more helpful in the reptile section? because ive never heard of a painted cichlid or a red eared slider cichlid lol


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## "qickshot" (Apr 19, 2005)

lol thats what i was thinkin


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## King Oscar (Apr 5, 2005)

lol thats what i was gonna say, dont some turtles have very slow growth rates, if so id saw get a sweet turtle

and sorry kinda off topic but do u still have ur turtle with ur rbp and how is that workin


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## "qickshot" (Apr 19, 2005)

yea its goin


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## rbp 4 135 (Mar 2, 2004)

as far as cichlids one con. a pair for a while, they will our grow it though.


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## Mettle (Dec 29, 2003)

A 10 gallon will not be suitable for a painted turtle for life. Males can get about 4-5" and females about 5-6". But there have been cases where the females have gotten bigger - 8" I believe. So for adulthood you're looking at probably around a 55 gallon tank for a male and a 75 gallon tank for a female.

A painted turtle is a turtle that likes to swim. It needs a decent amount of water to do this in and at the same time needs a spot for it to come out of the water. Above this basking spot, you need to have some type of light as the ambient air temp should be around 85 degrees farenheit, if I remember correctly. Normally a regular household 25 watt bulb will take care of this.

You also need special lighting for turtles. They require uvb light which you can buy fluorescent light tubes for in the reptile department of your local pet store. I've been doing a lot of reading on them - and the general consensus is that ReptiSun (made by ZooMed I believe) is the best on the market. I think the 5.0 is a good one for turtles.

You'll need some killer filtration as well as turtles are incredibly messy. They're as messy if not worse than oscars of equal size. So that gives you an idea. Double whatever normal filtration you would normally use.

I would also recommend leaving the tank barebottomed as painteds, like red eared sliders, tend to root through any type of substrate and will potentially swallow it. With gravel, this can simply outright kill them. With sand this can cause them to become impacted. The only other option is large, polished riverstones from a place like Walmart. The reason you want polished is otherwise the turtle can scrape its underside on rough surfaces.

The 10 gallon will be okay for now. I have one in a 10 gallon. But it's not ideal and he shouldn't be kept in it forever.

Hope that info helps.


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## benJii (Feb 17, 2005)

Mettle said:


> A 10 gallon will not be suitable for a painted turtle for life. Males can get about 4-5" and females about 5-6". But there have been cases where the females have gotten bigger - 8" I believe. *So for adulthood you're looking at probably around a 55 gallon tank for a male and a 75 gallon tank for a female.*
> [snapback]1133886[/snapback]​


i dont think anyone in there f*cking right mind would dedicate a whole 75 for a stinking turtle


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## Mettle (Dec 29, 2003)

Tibs said:


> Mettle said:
> 
> 
> > A 10 gallon will not be suitable for a painted turtle for life. Males can get about 4-5" and females about 5-6". But there have been cases where the females have gotten bigger - 8" I believe. *So for adulthood you're looking at probably around a 55 gallon tank for a male and a 75 gallon tank for a female.*
> ...


I know a guy who has a pair of turtles in a 120 gal. And there are plenty of people who would. I would, personally. And so would a lot of other people who are in to reptiles and the like... Lots of those folks would say people on these boards are morons for dedicating an equally sized tank to just one fish.

Oh, and Xemisions... If you're serious about the turtle *Click here for the Turtle Times forums*, which are really good and packed with info.


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## "qickshot" (Apr 19, 2005)

dam dude you make it sound so hard. my tutle would love you. he has no special light there is sand on the bottem and the tank is only at like 80 degrees. mine is doin just fine by the way. and i dont think you need killer filtration. my teacher had one in a tank with some bass and sunnys with one of them air filters with the cotten. o well u do it your way


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## Mettle (Dec 29, 2003)

"qickshot said:


> dam dude you make it sound so hard. my tutle would love you. he has no special light there is sand on the bottem and the tank is only at like 80 degrees. mine is doin just fine by the way. and i dont think you need killer filtration. my teacher had one in a tank with some bass and sunnys with one of them air filters with the cotten. o well u do it your way
> [snapback]1134465[/snapback]​


There's a big difference between keeping an animal and keeping it properly. What I listed is the general requirements for a turtle. I've kept turtles in the past and kept them imporperly. That's why my red ear slider only lived 14 years. He could've lived a lot longer than that.

Surviving is a far cry from thriving...


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## "qickshot" (Apr 19, 2005)

i get what you mean. mine is far from just surviveing. i was just saying you dont need to go threw all that for a turtle if its not your main think. i like to keep my piranhas in the best conditions you like to keep you turtle and maby your piranhas or what ever else you own in the best conditions. me i dont have the time or money to kepp the turtle that i caught from a lake in a 75 gal tank with special lights and al that. when he gets to big it will be back in the lake


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## eL ChiNo LoCo (Apr 16, 2004)

May I ask why in the world do you have your rbp with your turtle??


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## Xemisions (Apr 26, 2005)

Thanks everyone for all the info...im gonna goto those turtle forums...


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## Mettle (Dec 29, 2003)

"qickshot said:


> i get what you mean. mine is far from just surviveing. i was just saying you dont need to go threw all that for a turtle if its not your main think. i like to keep my piranhas in the best conditions you like to keep you turtle and maby your piranhas or what ever else you own in the best conditions. me i dont have the time or money to kepp the turtle that i caught from a lake in a 75 gal tank with special lights and al that. when he gets to big it will be back in the lake
> [snapback]1134546[/snapback]​


And then there's about a 90% chance that he'll die, as turtles who've been kept in captivity for extended periods of time are no longer capable of properly surviving in the wild.

If you're not willing or able to provide the animal with proper care then don't keep it. That's what my opinion is.


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## elTwitcho (Jun 22, 2004)

"qickshot said:


> i get what you mean. mine is far from just surviveing. i was just saying you dont need to go threw all that for a turtle if its not your main think.
> [snapback]1134546[/snapback]​


What makes you think yours is "far from just surviving" or that you don't need to go through all that stuff?

You don't have a proper substrate for it, you don't have a proper temperature for it, you don't have a proper light for it to bask under so it's body temperature NEVER gets to it's ideal point, and you're keeping it with a piranha that could kill it at any time. I can understand that he's cool, but just being cool doesn't justify wanting to keep it even though you can't keep it properly.


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## Mettle (Dec 29, 2003)

elTwitcho said:


> "qickshot said:
> 
> 
> > i get what you mean. mine is far from just surviveing. i was just saying you dont need to go threw all that for a turtle if its not your main think.
> ...


In about half of the threads I've read today you've been awesome.

Here's another good post telling someone like it is.

Word.


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## "qickshot" (Apr 19, 2005)

the piranha isnt wth it any more and he is is swimming playing with me eating alot so thats why i say he is far from just surviveing


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## "qickshot" (Apr 19, 2005)

ne thing i do thank you guys for yellin at me for is the light. i never even thought about it. they need the heat like other cold blooded animals so i have on on there now thanks for that guys


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## Mettle (Dec 29, 2003)

"qickshot said:


> ne thing i do thank you guys for yellin at me for is the light. i never even thought about it. they need the heat like other cold blooded animals so i have on on there now thanks for that guys
> [snapback]1135706[/snapback]​


Awesome.


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## WolfFish (Jun 30, 2004)

dude, its very very cheap to set up a basking light. Just buy a heat bulb for £3.50, and it will screw into a normal light fitting. So either buy one, or destroy a lamp (which is what i do lol, its easier). Then you can just hang it above a basking area, and adjust the heght etc until you get a good temperature.


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## "qickshot" (Apr 19, 2005)

the light isnt a problem i just never thought of it or i would have already had one. i set all my sh*t up my self and im very new to the hobby.


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