red eaed sliders

Question
we have had red eared sliders for many years in a outside pond, last year we found eggs in the water and "remodeled" the pond with an basking area outside the pond and made a area with dirt for the egg laying area. what kind of dirt material should we use, at the reptile store we were told to use sphagnum peat moss but i see in many articles to use a soil/vermiculite mixture. which is better? should i leave the eggs alone and let nature do it thing? or dig them up and put them in an incubation box.

Answer
Hello, I use a 50/50 mix of Sand and organic soil. Easy to dig and is most commonly found as their lay areas in the wild. Keep it moist.

If you live in an area that Red Ear Sliders are native too then you can let them be and have nature do its thing. If you don't live in such a place then I suggest carefully digging them up and placing them in the incubator. Do NOT turn the eggs as this can drown the embryo. Keep the side facign up always facing up. Some people use a marker to mark the side facing upwards to be sure they dont accidently turn them over.


Good luck
yexalen