Red-eared Slider

Red-eared sliders are the turtle that greets you: VCA notes they recognize their caretakers and swim to the glass or the surface when someone walks in, then haul out to bask under the lamp for hours. Plan for a filtered, heated tank of 10 gallons of water per inch of shell, a UVB bulb replaced every six months, weekly water changes and a life that can reach 40 years.

Temperament

Red-eared sliders are the most familiar pet turtle in the country, and they have more personality than their reputation suggests. LafeberVet describes them as hardy and outgoing, and VCA notes that in captivity they recognize their human caretakers and come to the top of the water or the side of the tank to greet them, mostly in expectation of food. They are semi-aquatic: they swim, then climb out to bask for hours, and VCA explains the name comes from the way they slide quickly back into the water to get away from predators and people. They are a watching pet, not a holding pet. A healthy slider retracts its head and limbs into its shell when handled, and most tolerate a lift for tank cleaning without ever becoming tame in a dog-like sense. VCA says wild sliders often bask in groups but are fine living on their own as pets, which suits a household with one tank.

“In captivity, they recognize their human caretakers and will come to the top of the water or side of the tank to greet them.”

VCA Animal Hospitals

Daily needs and attention

Day to day a slider asks little; the week asks more. Smaller or juvenile turtles in good health eat heartily every day, while adults may be offered a good-sized portion every two or three days, per VCA. Because all aquatic turtles eat and swallow with their heads underwater, feeding happens in the tank or, to keep the water cleaner, in a separate tub. Check the water thermometer, the basking thermometer and that the filter is running: VCA calls it critical to have a water filtration system or be prepared to change the water weekly, and its housing page wants the tank water changed at least once weekly regardless, more often if it gets dirty. That water change is the real job: draining and refilling a 75-100 gallon tank, scrubbing the basking platform and rinsing filter media takes an hour or two on a weekend. Heat and UVB lamps run on a timer. Wash hands after every feeding and every hand in the tank.

“It is critical to have a water filtration system or be prepared to change the water on a weekly basis.”

VCA Animal Hospitals

Health and lifespan

Pennsylvania Sea Grant gives a captive lifespan of up to 40 years, so the health goal is measured in decades, and VCA says an improper diet is the most common cause of health problems in captive aquatic turtles. Metabolic bone disease from a calcium-poor diet or missing UVB shows as a misshapen shell or deformed legs. Vitamin A deficiency produces lack of appetite, lethargy and swollen eyelids with a pus-like discharge, and abscesses often develop in the ears, appearing as large swellings on the sides of the head just behind the eyes. Respiratory infections cause bubbles at the mouth, nose and eyes, nasal discharge, wheezing and lethargy. Shell infections from bacteria, fungi or parasites, and gastrointestinal roundworms and protozoa, are common in pet turtles. VCA's rule is that any turtle showing a deviation from normal should be seen by a veterinarian familiar with reptile diseases as soon as possible; book a health check within two weeks of adoption, ideally with an ARAV member, and bring a fresh fecal sample.

“An improper diet is the most common cause of health problems in captive aquatic turtles, as well as many other reptile species.”

VCA Animal Hospitals

Habits and behavior

The slider's day alternates between water and lamp. VCA describes them as semi-aquatic turtles that like to leave the water to bask in the sun, sitting for hours on large flat rocks or logs in the wild; in a tank the basking platform under the heat and UVB lamps does that job, and a turtle that never hauls out is telling you the platform or the temperatures are wrong. They are excellent swimmers and, startled, slide back in fast. They learn the feeding routine quickly and beg at the glass. Sea Grant calls the species an aggressive omnivore that in the wild takes fish, plants, insects, amphibians and eggs, so a slider will hunt feeder fish in its tank and cannot share water with ornamental fish. Skin and scutes are shed in the water. VCA notes males are smaller than females and carry long toenails on both front feet, which is how an adult is sexed at a glance.

“They are semi-aquatic turtles, meaning they like to leave the water to bask in the sun.”

VCA Animal Hospitals

Housing: enclosure, heat and light

Space is the whole question. VCA's rule is 10 gallons of water per inch of shell length plus a dry basking zone of 15-25% of the surface area, with water at least 1.5-2 times the shell length deep and a swimming area 4-6 times the shell length long; the landing must let the turtle climb completely out of the water. For a 10-inch adult female that means a 100-gallon-plus system. Merck says small fishbowl-type tanks are not adequate for turtles of any age or size. A submersible heater keeps the water at 75-82°F; the basking area, checked daily with a thermometer, runs 75-88°F under a heat lamp. A UVB bulb in the 290-320 nanometer range sits within 12-18 inches of the turtle with no glass or plastic in between and is replaced every six months. Filtration is essential and the water is still changed at least weekly. Avoid sand or gravel, which turtles swallow. Put the tank on a stand rated for that much water.

“10 gallons of water per inch of shell length, plus a basking or dry zone that is 15% to 25% of the surface area.”

VCA Animal Hospitals

Challenges

Things to plan for, in the order they usually end a slider's time in a home. Growth: Sea Grant says adults reach up to 12 inches and unsuspecting owners are rarely prepared to keep them at that size, and the same page notes that release is illegal in Pennsylvania and that the species is now listed among the 100 World's Worst Invaders. Water: a filtered 100-gallon tank still needs a weekly change, which is heavy, wet work in a small apartment. Electricity and bulbs: a water heater, a basking lamp and a UVB bulb every six months, for decades. Vet: VCA notes people mistakenly assume reptile veterinary care costs less than for dogs and cats, and turtle-experienced vets are fewer. Salmonella: every hand in the tank is followed by handwashing, and the kitchen sink is off limits for tank gear. Lifespan: up to 40 years means deciding now who takes the turtle if you cannot.

“Adult sliders can reach lengths of up to 30 cm (12 in), and unsuspecting owners are rarely prepared to continue maintaining them in captivity at this size.”

Pennsylvania Sea Grant

The fun part

People who keep a slider for years keep it because it interacts. It sees you come in and swims to the glass; it learns the feeding routine; it stretches out flat under the lamp for hours in a way that never stops being funny. A well-run tank is a living-room feature: clear water, a turtle cruising past the glass, a basking rock with a resident. Feeding is the daily highlight, and the omnivore menu of pellets, dark leafy greens and the occasional feeder fish is something older kids can help prepare. Sliders are hardy and outgoing by LafeberVet's description and forgiving of a missed day, which suits a working household better than a fussier reptile. Once the tank, filter, heater and lamps are set up, most of the care is equipment running on its own; your part is the weekly water change and watching. VCA's verdict is that red-eared sliders can make great pets if cared for properly.

“Red-eared sliders can make great pets if cared for properly.”

VCA Animal Hospitals

Living with kids and other pets

Sliders are the reptile with the longest Salmonella record, which is why VCA and Merck both note that turtles under 4 inches cannot legally be sold in the United States. VCA warns that infection can be fatal in young children, the elderly and people with suppressed immune systems, and that children who handle turtles often and put soiled hands in their mouths are the ones exposed. ARAV, citing the CDC, says children under five should avoid contact with reptiles and households with infants under one should not own them; Merck adds children under 10 and pregnant women to the more-susceptible group and says to supervise children around the reptile. In practice: adults do the tank work, nobody washes tank gear in the kitchen or bathroom sink, and everyone washes with hot, soapy water afterward. Kids can watch, feed with tongs under supervision and help pick greens. Dogs and cats can injure a turtle or knock a lid, so the tank needs a secure cover, and Sea Grant lists fish in the slider's diet, so no tank-mates.

“All reptiles, not just turtles, can potentially carry Salmonella in their gastrointestinal tracts and shed it in their feces.”

VCA Animal Hospitals

What to ask the rescue

Start with size and sex, since a 10-12 inch female needs twice the tank of a 7-inch male; VCA's guide is 10 gallons of water per inch of shell. Ask how old it is and what it lived in. What tank, filter, water temperature and UVB did it have, and when was the bulb last replaced? Is the shell hard, smooth and uncracked, as VCA says a healthy one should be, or soft, pitted or misshapen? Any swollen eyes, lumps behind the ears, bubbles at the nose or wheezing? Is it eating, and what? Has a reptile vet done a fecal exam? Was it ever a wild pickup? Then measure your space, price a 75-125 gallon tank with stand, filter, heater and lamps, and confirm a reptile vet within driving distance. A slider that outgrows two tanks is the one that ends up back at the shelter, and Sea Grant's page on illegal releases shows where the rest go.

Sources

• VCA Animal Hospitals
• LafeberVet
• VCA Animal Hospitals
• VCA Animal Hospitals
• ARAV
• VCA Animal Hospitals
• Pennsylvania Sea Grant
• VCA Animal Hospitals
• Merck Veterinary Manual
• VCA Animal Hospitals
• VCA Animal Hospitals
• Merck Veterinary Manual