HELP: TL's ALLIGATOR SNAPPING TURTLE Diet and Care Questions

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TLkmDN

Polypterus
MFK Member
Jul 11, 2007
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Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia/Perth, Australia
hey bros and ladies. do Alligator Snappers:

keep well as a pair or do they fight/injure each other? i have one but I'm too scared to buy the another... i currently house my turtle in the blue fibreglass tub pictured here.... i also have a 10 foot by 3 foot tank in the waiting... they are only around 5 inches long each.

Also is it ok to just feed them fish meat for now?... they wont eat anything but chopped up fish meat!

PS: Any general advice you have for a rusty alligator gar caretaker?

THANKS for the time :)

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Bro, I don't know about any other food you can feed them. Chunked fish and live fish can get pricey as they grow, unless you like fishing.

They can get pretty big. I don't know if their present housing is big enough for when they start growing.

Whatever you do, keep your fingers at a distance, you don't want to feed them those... :-)
 
I've seen them together. The Steinhart aquarium in San Francisco had a huge pond with a few alligators and a bunch of alligator snappers. I don't know how good of an idea that was but it didn't look like they bothered each other at all. I think you're fine with feeding it fish chunks. Just make sure to mix up all the fish so that it gets a mix of nutrients. I've heard of some people also feeding theirs frozen/ thawed mice, but I'm not sure how good of a diet it is. Maybe an occasional treat.


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Aw3s0m3 said:
I've seen them together. The Steinhart aquarium in San Francisco had a huge pond with a few alligators and a bunch of alligator snappers. I don't know how good of an idea that was but it didn't look like they bothered each other at all. I think you're fine with feeding it fish chunks. Just make sure to mix up all the fish so that it gets a mix of nutrients. I've heard of some people also feeding theirs frozen/ thawed mice, but I'm not sure how good of a diet it is. Maybe an occasional treat.


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Click to expand...
Putting them together is a terrible idea. They will tolerate eachother for some time, then you will come home and find one has lost its leg, or its life. As for diet, stick to fish, whole or cut into chunks. No goldfish though. Just catch/buy bluegill or talapia.
 
Hi,

Another reader asked me to check in on this thread; i've recently retired from the Bronx Zoo, have kept and bred this species for decades. Young ones may gety along, but always a chance of a feeding accident or aggression; as they grow aggression becomes likely...I've kept pairs in very large exhibits with plenty of sunken logs, etc to break up the area, but still a bit risky; breeding always requires close monitoring.

Chunks of fish are not an adequate diet. Whole fishes with bones, internal organs essential; fish peices can be used in a pinch, on occasion, but are never used as a food source in prof collections. FW fish best, marine fishes (mummichugs, shiners) ok on occasion. Long term use of goldfish has been associated with liver/kidney problems; first ID'd at Bx Zoo with mata matas. Shiners, bait minnows, mollies, platies etc all fine. Try whole shrimp also, uncleaned best (can get from a fish market).

Cleaned FW fish from a human food store (tilapia, etc) better than just pieces...feed head, mid body, tail section on sep days if need be; organs missing but a decent option. Trapped/seined local fishes ok; crayfish and FW snails excellent, earthworms sometimes taken by youngsters; parasite transmission raised by some, but we've not seen that at Bx Zoo..there are pre-treatments if you prefer, methylene blus, etc...let me know and I'll look into it.

Many zoos and private individuals feed mice/rats w/o apparent ill effect, and field research shows they do take mammals; I prefer to limit, as digestive system has evolved to process a fish-based diet. Pinkies would be ok on occasion for young ones; I'd stay away from furred rodents. Chicks ok on occasion.

Never known any to refuse whole fish after being kept hungry for a time...fasting will do no harm; better in long run to get animal on a sound diet. Try trout chow and commercial turtle pellets as well. May need to fast turtle for some time before it will try pellets, but worthwhile as Zoo meds, standard trout chow have all been used with good results, mazuri makes a large turtle chow which can be used as they grow.

Articles below have photos of myself with a 206 lb male...as you see, you'll need to start planning their enclosures !: Please let me know if you need further info, enjoy, Frank

http://bit.ly/XZt60c (top photo is a common snapper, 75 lbs or so)
http://bit.ly/o3txrc
 
BronxZooFrank said:
Hi,

Another reader asked me to check in on this thread; i've recently retired from the Bronx Zoo, have kept and bred this species for decades. Young ones may gety along, but always a chance of a feeding accident or aggression; as they grow aggression becomes likely...I've kept pairs in very large exhibits with plenty of sunken logs, etc to break up the area, but still a bit risky; breeding always requires close monitoring.

Chunks of fish are not an adequate diet. Whole fishes with bones, internal organs essential; fish peices can be used in a pinch, on occasion, but are never used as a food source in prof collections. FW fish best, marine fishes (mummichugs, shiners) ok on occasion. Long term use of goldfish has been associated with liver/kidney problems; first ID'd at Bx Zoo with mata matas. Shiners, bait minnows, mollies, platies etc all fine. Try whole shrimp also, uncleaned best (can get from a fish market).

Cleaned FW fish from a human food store (tilapia, etc) better than just pieces...feed head, mid body, tail section on sep days if need be; organs missing but a decent option. Trapped/seined local fishes ok; crayfish and FW snails excellent, earthworms sometimes taken by youngsters; parasite transmission raised by some, but we've not seen that at Bx Zoo..there are pre-treatments if you prefer, methylene blus, etc...let me know and I'll look into it.

Many zoos and private individuals feed mice/rats w/o apparent ill effect, and field research shows they do take mammals; I prefer to limit, as digestive system has evolved to process a fish-based diet. Pinkies would be ok on occasion for young ones; I'd stay away from furred rodents. Chicks ok on occasion.

Never known any to refuse whole fish after being kept hungry for a time...fasting will do no harm; better in long run to get animal on a sound diet. Try trout chow and commercial turtle pellets as well. May need to fast turtle for some time before it will try pellets, but worthwhile as Zoo meds, standard trout chow have all been used with good results, mazuri makes a large turtle chow which can be used as they grow.

Articles below have photos of myself with a 206 lb male...as you see, you'll need to start planning their enclosures !: Please let me know if you need further info, enjoy, Frank

http://bit.ly/XZt60c (top photo is a common snapper, 75 lbs or so)
http://bit.ly/o3txrc
Click to expand...

+ 1. when i said chunks i meant chunks of whole fish. not cleaned or anything.
 
BronxZooFrank said:
Hi,

Another reader asked me to check in on this thread; i've recently retired from the Bronx Zoo, have kept and bred this species for decades. Young ones may gety along, but always a chance of a feeding accident or aggression; as they grow aggression becomes likely...I've kept pairs in very large exhibits with plenty of sunken logs, etc to break up the area, but still a bit risky; breeding always requires close monitoring.

Chunks of fish are not an adequate diet. Whole fishes with bones, internal organs essential; fish peices can be used in a pinch, on occasion, but are never used as a food source in prof collections. FW fish best, marine fishes (mummichugs, shiners) ok on occasion. Long term use of goldfish has been associated with liver/kidney problems; first ID'd at Bx Zoo with mata matas. Shiners, bait minnows, mollies, platies etc all fine. Try whole shrimp also, uncleaned best (can get from a fish market).

Cleaned FW fish from a human food store (tilapia, etc) better than just pieces...feed head, mid body, tail section on sep days if need be; organs missing but a decent option. Trapped/seined local fishes ok; crayfish and FW snails excellent, earthworms sometimes taken by youngsters; parasite transmission raised by some, but we've not seen that at Bx Zoo..there are pre-treatments if you prefer, methylene blus, etc...let me know and I'll look into it.

Many zoos and private individuals feed mice/rats w/o apparent ill effect, and field research shows they do take mammals; I prefer to limit, as digestive system has evolved to process a fish-based diet. Pinkies would be ok on occasion for young ones; I'd stay away from furred rodents. Chicks ok on occasion.

Never known any to refuse whole fish after being kept hungry for a time...fasting will do no harm; better in long run to get animal on a sound diet. Try trout chow and commercial turtle pellets as well. May need to fast turtle for some time before it will try pellets, but worthwhile as Zoo meds, standard trout chow have all been used with good results, mazuri makes a large turtle chow which can be used as they grow.

Articles below have photos of myself with a 206 lb male...as you see, you'll need to start planning their enclosures !: Please let me know if you need further info, enjoy, Frank

http://bit.ly/XZt60c (top photo is a common snapper, 75 lbs or so)
http://bit.ly/o3txrc
Click to expand...

WOAH this is great information! really learnt a lot from this! but yess the varied diet definitely sounds better. living in malaysia i have easy access to baby tilapia and other freshwater fish (whole). furthermore i currently have a 13,000 gal pond in my house... once my fish move to my new 100 foot pond late next year, my house pond will be pretty much empty. i can transfer the turtle there if need be... but he is only 4-5 inches atm... im sure he will take a while to ourgrow his blue tub, followed by his 600 gal tank that i have at the ready. So basically i will try to feed him a varied diet of WHOLE fish, shrimp and maybe even live food from the fish shop.

you mentioned turtle pellets earlier. Im sure they are packed with nutrients... but other than turtle pellets did you guys at the zoo have to train them to eat fruits and vegetables to get a balanced diet once in a while?
 
crayfishguy said:
Putting them together is a terrible idea. They will tolerate eachother for some time, then you will come home and find one has lost its leg, or its life. As for diet, stick to fish, whole or cut into chunks. No goldfish though. Just catch/buy bluegill or talapia.
Click to expand...

thanks for the advice... definitely not even gona attempt to risk it... im going run this beast solo :)
 
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