How to Care for an Eastern Painted Turtle

Painted turtles are found in areas of Canada and the United States, specifically southern and central portions of the United States and along the Atlantic coast. These turtles are small to medium in size with a smooth, flat outer shell, or carapace, that has a base color of black to dark green. Painted turtles are the only ones whose scutes or sectional plates are aligned straight across the carapace. The coloring between scutes is tan or yellow, with the bottom edge trimmed in red. Eastern painted turtles can live for up to 25 years.

Things You'll Need

  • 20-gallon aquarium (minimum)
  • Water
  • Filtering system
  • Props for basking area
  • UVB lighting
  • Thermometers
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Instructions

  1. Housing

    • 1

      Provide an aquarium that is both deep and wide. Eastern painted turtles need an environment where they can swim and dive. A 20-gallon tank makes a good starter home.

    • 2

      Consider beginning with a larger tank such as a 75-gallon tank if you are planning to keep the turtle indefinitely. Additionally, if you would like to keep two or three turtles, a larger tank is sufficient for several young turtles or two young adults.

    • 3

      Designate an area in the aquarium for basking and add a platform that will adequately hold the turtle during basking. Equip the basking area with a UVB reptile light source, available in pet stores.

    • 4

      Add gravel or other substrate to the bottom of the tank for appearance. Slate, rock or medium-size smooth gravel is sufficient but not necessary.

    Temperature

    • 5

      Install thermometers in the aquarium where temperatures can be monitored daily.

    • 6

      Obtain three thermometers. Use one thermometer for the tank, one for the basking area and a third to monitor the water temperature. Keep the general temperature outside the aquarium between 80 and 85 degrees Fahrenheit, and the basking temperature between 85 and 90 degrees Fahrenheit. Water is the only source of cooling for turtles; keep it between 70 and 75 degrees Fahrenheit.

    • 7

      Watch for changes in environmental temperatures. Sharp changes may indicate faulty equipment that you may need to replace.

    Water

    • 8

      Maintain the water of your turtle's environment and keep it clean. Install a filtering system for your aquarium. Use an external canister filter, as the filter and pump both remain outside the water and away from the turtle.

    • 9

      Replace 25 percent of the aquarium water each week and 100 percent every two weeks. Do so even when using a filtering system to help eliminate bacteria and the risk of health problems for both you and your turtle.

    • 10

      Relocate the turtle to a secure environment (e.g., bathtub) so that the tank can be cleaned once a week. Use a cleaning cloth and 3 percent bleach to 97 percent water. Rinse the tank thoroughly with water before refilling and reintroducing the turtle to its habitat.

    Feeding

    • 11

      Feed young turtles daily. Purchase commercial food, especially for young turtles, at pet stores, and make it comprise 25 percent of their diet. Make another 25 percent consist of meat sources such as fish, worms, crickets, cooked chicken or beef. Make the remainder of their diet consist of fresh greens (lettuce, collards, dandelion), fruits (bananas, apples and all types of berries) and vegetables (all types).

    • 12

      Feed adult eastern painted turtles every two to three days. Their diet is the same as that of a young turtle; however, feed less protein to adult turtles.

    • 13

      Provide calcium supplementation with each feeding. Calcium supplements for turtles are available at pet stores.