mind when housing a turtle outdoors.

Feeding my turtle

Turtles are both herbivorous and carnivorous, which means that they eat both plant and animal based foods. As a guideline, your turtle's diet should be about 50% plant-based material and 50% animal-based material.
Most young turtles eat daily; older turtles can be fed daily or every other day, depending upon each pet's individual appetite.

Plant material I can feed my turtle

Most (80-90%) of the plant material should be flowers and vegetables, and only 10-20% should be fruits.
As a rule, anything green and leafy should make up a large part of the diet. Yellow and orange vegetables should also be included. Avoid fiber-rich, vitamin-deficient vegetables including lettuce and celery; their composition is mainly fiber and water with little vitamins or minerals.

Acceptable vegetables include collard greens, mustard greens, turnip greens, alfalfa hay or chow, bok choy, kale, parsley, spinach (in small amounts), bell peppers, green beans, green peas, corn, okra, cactus, various squashed, sweet potatoes, cabbage or broccoli (also in small amounts), and flowers such as carnations, hibiscus, and roses (avoid azaleas as they are toxic).

Fruit can include apples, pears, bananas, grapes, peaches, kiwis, and melons. Fruits that are particularly healthy include figs (which contain calcium), papaya, raspberries and strawberries.

Protein foods I can offer my turtle

If you and your veterinarian decide that animal-based protein sources are acceptable, some appropriate foods include crickets, sardines (drained), tofu, hard-boiled eggs, moths, and mealworms. Dog and cat food contain too much Vitamin D and fat and should not be fed. Reptile pellets, bird pellets, trout chow, and other fish chows are excellent protein sources.

Live prey, such as crickets and worms, should either be raised by the owner, retrieved from a nearby field, or purchased from a pet store or reptile breeder. Care must be exercised when collecting insects, especially from the home garden as fertilizers and insecticides can be toxic to turtles.

Vitamins

It is recommended to LIGHTLY sprinkle all the food offered to the turtle with a calcium powder (calcium gluconate, lactate, or carbonate). A LIGHT weekly sprinkling of a good reptile vitamin on the food is also recommended.

Over-supplementation with vitamins and minerals can cause problems in turtles. Check with your veterinarian for specific recommendations about the need to supplement your pet's diet.

Water

Fresh water in a crock that won't easily tip over should be available at all times. Turtles will not only drink from the water bowl but will often bathe in it as well (although it is perfectly acceptable to mist the turtle with water a few times a week too). Make sure the water stays clean; many turtles love to eliminate in their water bowl as well as drink from it.

Common diseases of pet turtles

Common conditions of pet turtles include Vitamin A deficiency, respiratory diseases, abscesses, shell infections and fractures, and parasites.

Vitamin A deficiency occurs as a result of feeding turtles an inappropriate diet. The all-meat diet, or the
"cricket and fruit cocktail" diet, or the "lettuce and carrots" diet, are all deficient. Lack of Vitamin A produces signs seen with changes in the epidermis (outer layer of skin and mucus membranes), including lack of appetite, lethargy, swelling of the eyes and eyelids (often with a pus-type discharge), swelling of the ear (actually an ear abscess), and respiratory infections.

Most respiratory infections are caused by bacteria, and in turtles are often secondary to Vitamin A deficiency. Turtles with respiratory infections may have excess mucus in their oral cavities, nasal discharges, lethargy and loss of appetite, and possibly open-mouth breathing and wheezing.

Abscesses, commonly seen in pet turtles, appear as hard tumor-like swellings anywhere on the pet's body.
Abscesses in turtles are often related to Vitamin A deficiency.

Shell problems are often encountered in turtles. These can be infections caused by bacteria, fungi, or viruses, or more commonly are the result of fractures of the shells.

Parasites, such as roundworms, are common in pet turtles. They often cause no clinical signs and are detected on an annual fecal examination. They may, however, cause diarrhea or weight loss.

How do I know if my turtle is sick?

Signs of disease in turtles may be specific for a certain disease, such as nasal discharge in the case of a respiratory infection, or non-specific, such as a turtle with anorexia (lack of appetite) and lethargy, which can be seen with many diseases. ANY deviation from normal should be a cause for concern and requires immediate evaluation by your veterinarian.

Any disease in turtles can be severe enough to cause a loss of appetite and lethargy. When seen, these signs indicate a guarded prognosis and the need for hospitalization and intensive care, which can include fluid therapy and force-feeding.

Special Problems

Turtles have several unique problems; understanding these problems will allow you to better care for your pet and minimize future health care issues.

Cystic Calculi

Commonly called bladder stones, these occur when minerals from the diet form crystals, which then form stones. Usually these are composed of uric acid, which usually results from a diet that contains too much protein (such as a diet high in dog food or cat food).

Often, you will detect blood in your turtle's droppings. An examination and radiographs (X-rays) allow your veterinarian to correctly diagnose the problem. Surgical removal of the stones is needed, as is fluid therapy to prevent kidney damage. Your veterinarian will discuss dietary correction in an attempt to prevent future stones from forming.

Salmonella

Turtles are infamous for carrying Salmonella bacteria. This bacterium can cause severe gastrointestinal disease or septicemia (blood poisoning). Many animals and people carry the bacteria without showing any clinical signs (remember Typhoid Mary?), yet shed the bacteria in their feces which can infect others.
During the mid-1970s, it was discovered that many young children contracted the disease from their pet turtles. Many of these children didn't exercise proper hygiene (such as washing their hands after handling the turtles and even placing the turtles in their mouths).

Prevention, through proper hygiene, is the best way to control the disease. Since most turtles which carry Salmonella are not ill, they usually require no treatment (treatment often fails to kill the bacterium anyway).

Hibernation

If given the opportunity, most turtles will attempt to hibernate. While controversial, many feel that it is not necessary for the turtle's health that it does hibernate, but some owners wish to provide suitable conditions for hibernating. Hibernation is very stressful, and subclinical illnesses can manifest themselves during hibernation.

Only turtles that are in good health should be allowed to hibernate, so a thorough examination and appropriate laboratory tests are essential prior to hibernation!

A common problem in turtles is "pseudohibernation". True hibernation requires a constant temperature between 50-60 degrees (10-15 C). Persistent temperatures above 60 degrees (15 C) are not cool enough for true hibernation. These animals appear as if they are hibernating, but in reality the turtle increases its metabolism and slowly starves.