how to feed my turtle

Question
Hi, my new red eared slider is not eating at all and has no intrest in food , i have tryed everything! Do you know of any good household foods which the turtle may be inirested in i have tryed everything to make him eat, it has now been 2 weeks since he has eaten PLEASE HELP! THANKS!!!!

Answer
Red ears are normally pigs, so when they are not eating, the first thing we lok at is the basic care- this time of year, for most of us, the biggest issues are temps and daylight cycles.

If your tank is a bit cool, or if your daylight cycle is a long night and a short day, the turtle will switch to a reduced activity mode as it tries to figure out if it should hibernate or not.

Hibernation is OK, and full activity is OK, but the 'half and half' bit is bad because it uses energy but does not eat.

Boost your temps and light cycles and see if that helps.

If not, try some 'secret weapon' foods- feeder guppies, small live worms (from the pet shop's live fish food section), or small bits of raw liver dangled on a small wire like they are small fish.



Now- if you're SURE your basic care is solid (based on articles in places like www.tortoise.org), and the turtle is still not eating, all is not lost- turtles can go a long time on very little food. In fact, baby turtles often do not eat at all over the winter and still manage to gain weight.

Just keep trying different foods (you may want to try feeding it in a seperate, easy to clean tub for this part to keep the main tank clean), and tweaking the basic care issues. Also, look for stress-inducers, like being stared at by giants, pets nearby, vibrations, etc.