Most people agree that Turtles are entertaining pets to own, but many individuals get them not knowing how to look after them. They can not live unless you supply them with the correct amount of space, light and shade and adequate moisture, so you ought to know exactly what they need to exist, before you possess one. The best place to keep a turtle is in the open-air because they hibernate in the winter and if they are kept inside they won’t hibernate which can cause them to acquire liver diseases. It is unwise to muddle up their normal way of doing things so when you create a pen outside, you are letting them live in the kind of environment they are used to.
Some people who keep turtles indoors use refrigerators to make them hibernate. This action is not wise as there could be a power outage and the temperature inside the icebox could rise, this would come in the way of their regular hibernation. This could prove disastrous for the pet so if you decide to keep them indoors, at lest do not let them to go into the hide-and-sleep phase.
{Also, if you keep your turtle indoors, you must have a tank that is at least forty gallons and there has to be enough room to have a land area and a water area. The design of the aquarium should be such that two-thirds of its capability should be water and the balance land, where they can rest in the heat of the lamp. The temperature of the aquarium ideally should be close to 80 degrees during daytime and seventy degrees during nighttime. As they are cold blooded, these pets usually take long to get used to varying temperatures. This is why never attempt to bring it out of the tank for playing as the temperature drop or rise adversely affects their immune system.
{Often turtles carry salmonella so be sure to clean your hands after handling them, but, their environment also needs to be kept clean too. You might have to think about a water purification system to clean the water and keep it clean. It is not a good thing to fill up the tank with water from the faucet, which contains chlorine, and fluoride and these puts the ph balance in disarray. Use filtered water for drinking needs and de-chlorinated water for their swimming needs. There are many commercial diets available for turtles but dietary demands differ depending on the species, nevertheless, you should not feed your pet more than two to three times a week. Make sure that the water is kept free from wood chips or tree barks as these contaminants can create problems for the turtle, and to top it, these also act as pollutants giving way to the growth of fungus and molds.
{Turtles need 12 hours of sunshine so you need to get a UV lamp for your tank to furnish the vitamin D3 that sunlight gives off if you keep it inside because they need this to stay healthy. This is the reason why you see these creatures basking in the sunlight for hours, so when indoors keep the tank at a place where there is not much temperature variation and some shady area for them to unwind. You could either make them with wood and stones or buy them from pet stores, but if you want to keep aquatic plants in the tank, make sure that they are safe for the creatures. To know your turtle better, watch his behavior closely as they are extremely entertaining and can provide pleasure for the whole family.
