My friend just bought this tiny little red eared slider turtle. It's only a baby, and probably about an inch long.
The problem is, she's pretty sure he's going to stay this way because "that kind of turtle stays cute and tiny." She pretty much treats him like a goldfish. She absolutely adores him, though. So i guess that's good.
Problem is, this thing is going to grow. A lot. Sliders aren't small turtles. They grow slowly, but they get BIG.
My girl was about 4 inches long when I ought her, and four years laters she's doubled in length. She's huge, eats a ton, and has a massive tank. She's not really cute anymore, she has a big head and strong jaws and her claws are
sharp. I adore her, and I was fully prepared for her to grow when I bought her. She's happy and healthy, and gets to live outside in our 150-gallon pond during the summer.
She also gets a lot feeder fish and bits of meat and good quality turtle pellets. She's a very spoiled reptile.
My friend is not prepared for this. She doesn't even have a heat lamp, she just keeps the tank next to a window. She's pretty convinced that this is perfectly adequate.
I really hope he doesn't get sick. Hatchlings are so easy to take care of- until they grow and need more space and get sick from the cold.
People need to realize that turtles are no different than any other pet. Do your research before you buy them, you don't just plunk them in a tank and feed them everyday and expect them to be okay. Then when they get too big people dump them in forests and lakes. The poor turtle ends up dying and they spread all sorts of diseases to all the other local turtles.
On a similar note:
I feel so lonely having a pet turtle. Everyone always goes on about how cute and fuzzy their dog or cat is while I'm changing my turtle's filter and watching her chase down fish.
Seriously, how can people resist these faces? D=
