Understanding Calcium, Cuttlebone, and its role in Supplementing the Diets of our Exotic Pets
Proper availability of calcium within an animals body is vital in maintaining multiple bodily functions and for skeletal formation and repair…
The Diagnostic and Medication Processes for Aquatic Turtles (Part -2 “Shell Problems and Wounds”)
As with any pet we keep and care for (turtles included), there are sometimes situations that come up where medical/veterinary…
Quick-Answer: Why is my turtles shell turning white?
Turtles kept in aquariums that have “hard” water from the tap will sometimes develop a whitish scale on their shells. When the turtles climb…
Outdoor Enclosures for Box Turtles
For those of us who are lucky enough to live in a temperate area with normally good weather, we are able to give our Box turtles occasional time “outside”…
Diagnostic and Medication Processes for Aquatice Turtles (Part 1 “Eye Problems”)
As with any pet we keep and care for (turtles included), there are sometimes situations that come up where medical/veterinary assistance is helpful, or indeed, required. Aquatic and Terrestrial turtle species, like most animals, have certain illness’s and conditions that are common to their particular genera…
The Proper Lighting of Aquatic Turtle Enclosures – (Part 2 of the Turtle-Tech Heating & Lighting Series)
As we mentioned in Part 1 of this series, articles on Heating and Lighting reptile enclosures are usually lumped together into one blanket article. Although these two issues have plenty of overlap, we find it helpful to separate both and address them separately. This gives the adequate time and space…
Quick-Answer: Does feeding my turtle outside the aquarium really help keep the aquarium clean?
Well, maybe sometimes! If you tend to overfeed your turtles consistently, then feeding them outside the tank in a separate container will prevent the extra leftover food from polluting their aquarium, but the problem really is that you overfeed, and that’s not good. If you feed…
Quick-Answer: Question: Is it true that Turtles can drink through their skins? Or even through their Rectums?
No, despite rumors to the contrary, there is absolutely no clinical proof to support the hypothesis that turtles/tortoises can absorb any significant amount of liquid through their skins or the cloaca (or supporting tissue). In this, Veterinarians specializing…
The Biological Cycling of Aquatic Turtle Aquariums – Advanced Discussion
For those of us who have spent a lifetime raising and keeping Aquatic Turtles along with being involved in the Tropical Fish Hobby, the term “cycling” or more correctly “biological cycling” is a commonly understood subject. For Beginners in either hobby though, hearing the constant “cycling” reference without really understanding the principle or the application of this process, can be understandingly…
Proper Substrate for the Turtle Tank
A proper layer of substrate at the bottom of any aquatic aquarium environment, whether it be for turtles or tropical fish, actually performs a few different purposes. All of them useful to maintaining a safe, stable situation for the animals living within the aquarium. First of all, the substrate (most commonly a layer of clean gravel) obviously goes…
