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Post by soytinly on Aug 8, 2013 13:55:19 GMT
Two months ago I took on two musk turtles. One is 7 years old and I call her ‘Chicken’. The other one is 2 years old and I call this one ‘Chuck’. I was told they were Red-Eared sliders and didn’t like to swim much. However I’ve since had them identified at a reptile store as MUSK turtles and it turns out they absolutely love the water. And whilst Chuck does use the basking area a bit, Chicken never does – should I be concerned about this? I’ve read over the net about shell-rot and seeing as they used to not be in all that much water but now are, could this be problematic for Chicken in the long run? Should I force her out of the water on a daily basis or is that verging on cruelty seeing as she gets pretty restless when I take her out of her tank just to clean it. Any advice would be greatly appreciated. Merci buckets!
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Post by turtlegirl on Aug 8, 2013 17:50:36 GMT
Don't worry, musks are largely aquatic -some like basking, some don't. Yours may also be shy and bask only when you aren;t watching. Musks hate being handled, they get stressed when picked up...and they have a nasty bite!
They need clean water with frequent changes as they are messy eaters. Water can be deep (my musk tank is 3/4 full with water) but they need artificial plants and some kind of rock or platform to rest on just below the surface as thye are not good swimmers. They can use their long necks like snorkels to breathe while resting on it.
Red ears are different and much bigger They are excellent swimmers and need large tanks with deep water
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