yellow bellied slider care

[elvispacman]

I have this turtle that i want to keep but im pretty sure its a yellow bellied slider since it looks exactly like a red eared but yellow and not green, if i could keep him in a 55 gallon tank or should i make a small pond for him in the backyard.Also could anyone give me some information on how to care for it that be helpful the people at petsmart didn't tell me much and said it was a tortoise
how do i edit the title

[mistahoo]

Click edit and advanced options

[mnemenoi]

Possibly a River Cooter? Nearly all the species in that family are very similar in care and temperment. Tank would need to be immense and would still likely grow too large. Medium ponds can work, but they do best in the wild. These are very large turtles at adult size and can consume a large amount of prey and produce a good amount of waste.

Smaller turtles can work a bit better, try finding a mud/musk turtle.

[elvispacman]

i checked its not a river cooter,theres no green on him at all its not very big about size of half a sheet of paper, and how immense of a tank would i need and im pretty sure its a yellow bellied slider,i had pictures of him but i cant seem to find them

[mnemenoi]

Most of the family gets 10"+, the yellow bellied getting to 11.4". I would imagine a 60+ gallon tank could suffice, granting a terrestrial and aquatic area. I would recommend triple filtration (180+ gallon filtration at a minimum) and weekly 80%+ water changes. Lighting is critical and most basking turtles require UVA & UVB lighting for proper shell growth. Vitamin supplementation is needed as there are quite a few diseases that effect this family if not supplemented properly. I believe (one of the mods?) has a tank (300G) with something similar and could probably give you a better idea as to their long term care in captivity. I have had many turtles over the years and they can be quite a bit of work, but rewarding if you decide to go that route.

[elvispacman]

i got some picks of the turtle anybody know what it is, i put some vitashell on him hes had the craters since i got him

[troy tucker]

A pond would be best for the turtle. As for a tank you would need a 4' + 2' foot print. They need the space to grow or they will have miss-shapend shells. They need to be able to bask. to worm them selfs in the sun. this i why a pond is best.

[elvispacman]

okay so what species is he,and what can i feed him cause i put turtle pellets but he just seems to ignore them

[troy tucker]

it is the slider turtle that you think it is. Try feeding it live food go get some feeder fish...

[elvispacman]

oh well i saw him eating them i just had to get out of its line sight

[barberking12]

he will eat pellets you just have to let him get hungry enough

[elvispacman]

so how many pellets do i give per feeding,i usually give him enough food arouidn the size of his head since hes a slow eater