Just bought an Alligator Turtle. Help!

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Hello Guys,

Good morning. Just wanted to say I only see 2 fish in the tank( had 3 in total)... looked everywhere and couldn't find the third so I assume Bowser ate one.... also caught Bowser with his mouth open wiggling his tongue when the other 2 fish were near him.. which is a great sign. I'm happy, relieved and excited... Now all I have to worry about is cleaning his tank, making sure he says healthy and figuring out where to put the 200 gallon when the time comes =). If you guys have any other tips you would like to share please do not hesitate. Also, I'm going to buy some veggies... is lettuce, and carrots good enough? Anything else like beets, cellary? How often should I clean the tank? The water is murky at the moment, due to the pellets not being eaten and I guess poop... should I wait a few more days until he eats the other fish? Also, do I need to clean Bowser?... saw someone on youtube take one put him in a tub/sink and cleaned with a toothbrush?

I appreciate all the help guys

Thanks,
 
Looks to be this years hatchling not two years old, the bent tails (or pigtails) show up in a small percentage of hatchling and should not affect it's health. Here is a link to a care sheet from the largest breeder in the US (and possibly the world).

Care Title

It is very important you know how to care for an Alligator Snapping Turtle. These turtles do very well in captivity if a few basic guidelines are followed, here is some useful information about the snappers.
www.turtleman.com www.turtleman.com
 
Hi Plecostomus,

I appreciate the link. Actually reached out to them yesterday hoping they can answer some questions. They never got back to me as I'm sure they are busy but the website is awesome. Completely forget the minnows are no good but listened to the petco people as well since they recommended them.... just added 2 Guppies to the tank.

Thanks again,
 
The turtle doesn't need cleaning but you may want to siphon out its waste and shredded feeder fish bits everyday.
 
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Hi Tigerbob,

Goina be tough just taking out the waste and shredded feeders... might as well clean the water on a weekly or Bi-Weekly basis?

Thanks,
 
Hi Rocksor,

I figured it would be easier to just clean the whole tank because the whole tank is slowly getting murky with fish poop, uneaten pellets, turtle poop, remains, etc....didnt realize the siphon can just pick up the stuff directly from the floor. Will go out later today and get a siphon system from Petco.

Also now that I know he eats fish, any recommendations on feeding him something else or just stick with fish for the time being as a diet... haven't thrown any veggies in yet.... do you think watermelon will be ok? One of the Petco girls recommended frozen bloodworms....

Thanks,
 
Frozen blood worms, krill, mysis shrimp. Earthworms, red wigglers, frozen tilapia from the market are good.always thaw out frozen foods either before or during feedings. Try to avoid vegetables that have high acids like citrus, wouldn’t use celery as you asked before, personally not sure if it would even take vegetables tbh.

any of these foods left in the water will foul the water quite fast. It’s more of a daily cleaning than a weekly or biweekly deal with uneaten foods like this. Bad water quality will increase the chances of the turtle getting sick

the syphon is a must and don’t forget to get a filter for the water, it will save you much grief in the end.
 
Bowser Frey said:
Hi Rocksor,

I figured it would be easier to just clean the whole tank because the whole tank is slowly getting murky with fish poop, uneaten pellets, turtle poop, remains, etc....didnt realize the siphon can just pick up the stuff directly from the floor. Will go out later today and get a siphon system from Petco.

Also now that I know he eats fish, any recommendations on feeding him something else or just stick with fish for the time being as a diet... haven't thrown any veggies in yet.... do you think watermelon will be ok? One of the Petco girls recommended frozen bloodworms....

Thanks,
Click to expand...
To be honest I wouldn't listen to petco as they literary been telling you some lies. First off you should never feed your fish feeder fish do to the health issues and i recommend you get a filter for your tank. As i can't see one. Lastly I would suggest doing some research on the turtle and make sure its not illegal to keep it in your state. Btw im not trying to be rude
 
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