# Diet for my new baby alligator snapper



## Fordfanatic (Feb 2, 2006)

Hey guys, I am getting my baby alligator snapping turtle on wednsday. I have the tank set up and it has about 3 dozen rosy reds in it right now. I was wandering what his main diet should consist of besides these. Also all information/precautions about care you guys think I should know about these turtles will help. I have been to several informational sites and any extra helps. Thanks in advance


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## Fordfanatic (Feb 2, 2006)

Anybody?


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## JorgeRemigio (Mar 31, 2005)

Hello!

Get it used to fish and meat from young age... by now just give it small fishes. (frozen would be the best, do not have it "hunting")
If possible give it lots of room, although this species hunts by "seat and wait"...is good if they can move around... try to keep water clean... and make sure your hands are far from its mouth

Good luck


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## cueball (May 24, 2005)

ware did yo buy him? i always wanted one but cant find one in canada anywares


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## dark FrOsT (Sep 23, 2006)

i hope you know hwat your getting into, these turtles get to massive sizes and wieght, not to mention there life span. i was working with one on thrusday and it takes at least 2 people to move and left. and its mouths is big enough to bite my arm off.

meat and fish is what they eat i would use frozen food like JorgeRemigio said you dont want it to mistake your wiggling finger for a little fish. really cool turtle i like the little lure they have to trick prey. anywho be carefully what every part of you is in its mouth you will never see again


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## Fordfanatic (Feb 2, 2006)

Hey guys, thanks for the replys. I currently feed my piranha tilapia and catfish. Will this work? What kind of meat is safe?

I got him from John Richards(www.turtleman.com). His website says he can take a turtle back in return for smaller ones if they get too big to handle. Although I plan to house this guy for along time.

Thanks again guys for the replys and I'll be cautious.


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## skarrow33 (Nov 15, 2005)

you can also try night crawlers, possbbly crayfish my turtles love em... or crickets


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## Fordfanatic (Feb 2, 2006)

Yea I thought about crayfish. Thanks man!


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## KingRex (Sep 4, 2006)

The fish both live and dead, you mentioned will work fine. I've also heard that raw turkey/chicken neck works good to. ~ Rex


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## dark FrOsT (Sep 23, 2006)

i feed my turtles smelt, fish fillets and shrimp, i would think that any fish would do but some are better then others. if its safe for your piranhas it should be alright for your turtle


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## Fordfanatic (Feb 2, 2006)

dark FrOsT said:


> i feed my turtles smelt, fish fillets and shrimp, i would think that any fish would do but some are better then others. if its safe for your piranhas it should be alright for your turtle


Cool thanks for your help!


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## dark FrOsT (Sep 23, 2006)

no worries, glad to help. there pretty easy to keep since they are not to active i would put it in like a kiddie pool or large tub when it gets larger. it should be able to get out


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## rchan11 (May 6, 2004)

I used to feed mine rosie reds and worms.


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## SERRAPYGO (Feb 4, 2003)

You'll probably be dead and buried, and the turtle passed on to relatives by the time it gets too big to move by yourself. 
I like some of the previous advice. Stick to fish based foods primarily. Red meat probably only comes along ocassionally in the wild. As a juvenile, don't make him work too hard for food by only offering live feeders. Keep it balanced.


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## Fordfanatic (Feb 2, 2006)

How can I get him to eat pieces of fish? I don't wanna leave the fish in the water to rot too long. How long should I leave it in there? I don't think he will eat it imediatly. thanks


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## DiscusMel (Jul 21, 2004)

Use a pair of tongs and wiggle the food infront of it, it'll
soon suss it out.

Be warned though if you use raw chicken you could then
have problems with salmonella.

Its a good idea to get it on some sort of commercial turtle
pellet to make sure its gets all the vitamins and minerals it needs.


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## Fordfanatic (Feb 2, 2006)

Thanks for the advice!


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## baddfish (Feb 7, 2003)

OK. As far as feeding, ALL types of fish, wether its live or frozen/thawed, it WILL be eaten. Ive got a nice 14-15in 17yr old Gator snapper that will DEVOUR very young chickens, rats and ANY live meaty foods that will be thrown at him. I do however keep meats as a SMALL portion of its diet. Fish is the main food for it. It will take nightcrawlers as well. As young, they will THRIVE on Trout Chow pellets. VERY high source of protien. As far as it getting salmonella, it will NOT happen because of eating chicken. LOL. ALL herps are susceptable to having salmonella. If you handle ANY herp/amphibian, you MUST wash hands thouroughly with soap and water. Plain and simple. OK then, enjoy that turlte. You got a permmanent mascot on your hands. Keep its environment as CLEAN as possible at ALL times!


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## Fordfanatic (Feb 2, 2006)

Hey thanks for your reply! How long have you had yours? What size? Where can i get these trout pellets?

I tried feeding pieces of fish with tongs the past two days, not working very well. I guess it will just take time.


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## DiscusMel (Jul 21, 2004)

baddfish said:


> As far as it getting salmonella, it will NOT happen because of eating chicken. LOL


_Raw chicken can carry Salmonella, a disease organism of humans. While there is debate over how prevalent Salmonella is in turtles to begin with, loading them with a fresh supply seems injudicious._

http://www.austinsturtlepage.com/Articles/menu.htm

Its actually all over the internet if you want to google about it









Was speaking to a friend with a snapper and he said a firm fav food is earthworms


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## Artix2442 (Jul 26, 2008)

i got a baby gator snapper about a year ago and i keep it in a tank that i think it about 9 gallons i have been feeding them aquatic food sticks that float it was going good at first but they have stop eating them i have tried other foods but it not going that well i need some advice badly and i just joined can anyone plz help me























im not all that sure how the tank should be set up to

anyone?


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## dark FrOsT (Sep 23, 2006)

giving it a larger tank my help, lots of cover should make it feel more secure. tell giving it some minows, i have had lots of sucusses feeding beef heart to my florida snapping turtle.... is it sitting with its mouth open? if so uses tongs and place food in its mouth and move it around.

if you get it eating again i would improve its diet, more meat and fish. pellets are good but i dont think they are all that great for a turtle that gets the size of a alligator snapper. i dont even like feeding my red ears pellets i think a mixed diet of meat, fish, insects and sometimes even a tad of greens/fruit will really improve the health and life as a capitive turtle.

make sure the water is very very clean, and the proper temp. maybe even add a basking area


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## Artix2442 (Jul 26, 2008)

thanks i just gave them a bigger tank a couple days ago i looks like there shell is pealing off a little it weird they are alot more active the tank water is foggy thoue still not eating i tryed canaden bacon once it didet go so well and i cant find any minnow shops any where and i have only seen one eat a tiny pice of a pellet they havet really eaten any thing for like 2 months is weird i guess they have a low manatalisem,

im going to go and try to feed them now

thanks for the advice


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## dark FrOsT (Sep 23, 2006)

you get minnows at a bait shop (like for fishing). see if you can get beef heart, sobeys has it. cut the fat off (well i think its fat) its white and then with forcepts wiggle it right in front of there faces. mine loves it. do you have a heater and filter? also is there a place for it to hide in the water?


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## Artix2442 (Jul 26, 2008)

ok ty theres no place for them to hide idk what to give them to hide under i dont have a heater for them and i just fed them a big ass worm when i came back to check it was gone all of it


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## dark FrOsT (Sep 23, 2006)

i fed mine worms the other day ... they ate it all up. as for a hid area i have used a few things plants, grape vine roots but what i find works good wiith my snapper was i made a tabel like thing to fit inside the tank out of wood. it can sit on top and bask or go under to hide


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## Artix2442 (Jul 26, 2008)

ok the way i set up the tank was i put rocks up in one side and filled the rest with water. its very rare to see them up on the rocks there mostly in the water i will try to find a thig for them to hide under i will post a photo is just a sec


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## Artix2442 (Jul 26, 2008)




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## blackmaskelong (Aug 18, 2007)

Artix2442 said:


>


I cought 2 just the other day up north I am still up north as I post but they were 45 pounds and the female was 34 pounds big freaken turtles


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## Mettle (Dec 29, 2003)

Is there a filter in that water?


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## Artix2442 (Jul 26, 2008)

cool my turtles a still babys they both are about 1 inch long and no dont have a filter


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## ChilDawg (Apr 30, 2006)

Artix2442 said:


> cool my turtles a still babys they both are about 1 inch long and no dont have a filter


Well, then, what is your water change schedule?


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## ChilDawg (Apr 30, 2006)

Wait...did I read they are a year old and only an inch long? Guys, is that normal?


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## Mettle (Dec 29, 2003)

Not normal at all. Sounds like they're not being given the proper environment to grow in. Turtles generally need uvb, a basking spot, AMAZING filtration (or daily 100% water changes), etc etc. Otherwise they'll live short and possibly miserible lives.


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## ChilDawg (Apr 30, 2006)

I think post #23 sounds absolutely horrible as well...they haven't really eaten in two months and their skin is peeling off...sounds like nutritional deficiencies are going to be made manifest soon, and sounds like they're in serious trouble there, too.

This seems to be a cautionary tale which should teach us to research our pets before obtaining them.


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## Mettle (Dec 29, 2003)

The shell peeling off is probably just them 'shedding' or 'scaling'. My turtles do it too.


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## dark FrOsT (Sep 23, 2006)

alligator snappers have a really slow growth rate, that aside i think this turtle needs to start getting a better diet. i find with turtles filters can some times be a pain only cause the clog if they are not cleaned often. i find that its easier to just do a complete water change. for smaller turtles, like this snapper. a small filter should be able to keep up with it tho. a 20-30gal tank would be more then enough to give it room to grow. what i would suggest as a good tank setup would be getting rid of those small rocks and if you really want to give it a substrate get some larger river rocks it doesnt have to be deep. it is so much easier keeping the tank of a turtle clean without a substrate tho. get a board at home depot, and make a table. cut one piece big enough to sit lengh wise in the tank, then two cut pieces to act as legs, something like this:









sorry for my lack of art talent. i have something like that setup for my florida snapper and he loves it, i have some larger rocks on the top of the table so it can wieght it down to sink, also the rocks absorb heat. i see my little guy on top of the table quite often and when he wants to retreat underwater and hide he will swim below it. i also have a small filter to mainly just to keep the water moving around under the table


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## Artix2442 (Jul 26, 2008)

ok ty for everything i just found out that they havent been eating the worms i give them there live in the basement in my room i used grape vines for some proteakshin they NEVER come out of the water they only stivk there heads up to get air i just want to see them eat and be a little more active


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## dark FrOsT (Sep 23, 2006)

try feeding them from tongs


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