Russian turtle Maximus

Question
Hi, I just bought a Russian turtle from petco about two weeks ago. I'm not sure how old he is but his shell is about 4.5 inches long. I had two questions: He will eat whatever amount of food I give him so I've been feeding him lettuce(romaine, spring mix), tomato slices, and shredded carrots about three times a day. I want to know if I am over feeding him. Also, he has been sneezing every now and then since I've given him the romaine about three days after i got him. It isn't all the time but I didn't know if it had anything to do with what I am feeding him. I only give him bottled water so that isn't an issue. I do like to take him out of his tank and let him walk around about once a day for exersize. Might that have anything to do with it? Im trying to locate a turtle specialist but I would love your input in the meantime. Thanks, Jess

Answer
Diet- this is a bit 'wetter' than we would usually go with for a Russian. Tomatoes, for example, should be a rare, if ever, treat- they can cause diarrhea. We would also want to see things like Timothy hay, etc. to add some fiber and drier foods.

Amount- a good rule of thumb is to give it one meal a day, and skip one a week or so. There are several guidelines for the one meal- what they eat in 15-30 minutes, an amount the size of their head, etc. The thing is that it is REALLY easy to over-feed these guys- reptiles need a LOT less food than we mammals do.

Sneezing- this is usually a sign of a respiratory infection. It might be a touch of the sniffles (which MIGHT be from drafts from wandering around).

I would go to a good care site like http://ww.russiantortoise.org or http://www.tortoisetrust.org and read up on the cares, housing, and diet for your guy.

These are not real hard to care for, but it does take a little work to get things going well at first. Good luck!