tanks

Question
hi, i was just wondering how big of a tank i should have for my three red eared sliders. i know how big the standard size for one turtle is, but on all the other web sites they just say it needs to be bigger for more turtles; but i dont know how much bigger. 2 of my 3 turtles are 5 ins long and the other is 4 ins long

                                 thank you for your time

Answer
Hello Ashley, at this point in the turtle's life it is definately time to think about either a huge enclosure, separating them into their own somewhat large enclosure or the best option of putting them in an indoor or outdoor pond.

The rule is 10 gallons of tank per inch of shell. So a 1 inch turtle needs a 10 gallon tank.

So you have two 5 inch turtles meaning 10 inches of turtle plus the other one which is 14 inches of turtle. You will need at least a 140 gallon tank.

This is getting into the extremes. which is why I suggest a pond. With a pond you can go a little bit lower on the gallons mostly because there is more diameter room to swim rather then in a boxy tank. However if you live somewhere that the turtles are not native then acheiving proper temperatures and such can be difficult. I think its best to somehow work with putting a pond inside the home.

Something along these lines:

http://redearslider.com/habitat_gallery.html

Click on Indoor Habitats and then you will notice a few pictures of a pre-formed pond setup inside a home. Or you can research what is needed to house them outside.

Good luck
Yexalen