Seven Mud Turtle Hatchlings - September 10, 2010

This video features seven 3-stripe mud turtle hatchlings. Five were hatched here at home and two are rescues from the local roads. Folks thinking about keeping turtle hatchlings should remember that they can live 30 or 40 years and there is some effort in the care of aquatic critters. I feed hatchlings live earthworms, scallops, salmon (a favorite), shrimp, and Baby Reptomin.

Category:

Pets & Animals

Tags:

• 3-stripe
• mud
• kinosternon
• baurii
• common musk
• sternotherus
• odoratus
• stinkpot
• turtle
• turtles
• chelonian
• fish
• aquarium
• tank
• pets
• animals
• reptile
• aquatic
• Florida
• wildlife
• swamp
• pond
• lake
• stream
• river
• creek
• wetland
• retention pond
• conservation area
• Hillsborough river

[sammytheshark1]

DEAR BAURIBOB, do u feed them earthworms that u catch or what??

[BauriBob]

@sammytheshark1 sometimes I catch them but usually I buy them from a bait shop, much easier that way.  I feed them fish and chicken also.

[mrturtle5681]

would u sell any of them

[BauriBob]

@mrturtle5681 I release all my hatchlings back into the wild. The hatchlings in this video were released back in 2010. Sorry, I don't sell turtles.

[BauriBob]

@MsChibiKawaii the moss doesn't hurt the turtles. The moss starts out as moss balls which you can buy in many aquarium shops. I pile them up so the turtles can hide in them. Turtles will occasionally eat gravel or sand, probably to aid in digestion. I've never seen any problem associated with that practice. It is possible some large gravel could cause an impaction, but it has never happened to any of my turtles.

[BauriBob]

@MsChibiKawaii debris tends to collect on top of the sand, so you can siphon it up if you feel the need. My tank is fairly large and has moss on top of the sand so it is nearly impossible to clean - so I don't. Debris on the bottom eventually breaks down into ammonia byproducts and is dispatched by the wet/dry filter.

[BauriBob]

@MsChibiKawaii in time it can, but Algae can grow on the sides of an aquarium too, so what difference does it make? You can stir the sand with a long stick to break up the algae if you want. But the algae won't hurt anything. Sand is probably the favorite substrate for turtles. A bare tank is very unnatural for the turtles, hard to crawl on, no place to dig.

[BauriBob]

@XxxeverythingmexxX yes, only mud turtles. 

[XxxeverythingmexxX]

do you only have mud turtles??

[TurtleRez2]

@BauriBob Cool Thanks,