HI Melinda, I've 2 red-earred sliders & I got them from the pet store when they were a quarter size last Nov. 23 rd for my birthday. Now, a yr later, on my birthday this yr. I measured the female and she is 8 1/2" long and the male is 6 1/2" long.

She grew 8" in 1 yr. I feed them goldfish, guppies, waxworms, mealworms, nightcrawlers, and dried shrimp.

I just love watching them swim and now, the babies movements. I keep saying, ooh, they are moving around.

Id love to get a Sulcata someday.

How large did she grow in that size tank? Man, my Cecil would be a HUGE monster in there.

Wow! Your's is much bigger than mine! I just feed her turtle bites. Maybe I need to get her some live food. Her shell is maybe 6 inches long, front to rear, at almost 4 years old.

Here in Oklahoma, every spring, they are just everywhere! I live on the Arkansas River, so that may have something to do with it. You see them crossing the road frequently that time of year. I can't save them all tho!

She started out in a 20 gallon tank with just a little water in it, and in the summer I moved her to an outdoor 90 gallon fish pond. When the 20 gallon got a little small for winter time use, I moved her to the 125 gallon tank in the house where she now lives year round. I would really prefer she not get huge! Yes, she has a wonderfully big tank but I don't dare put tropical fish in it anymore, I'm afraid she would eat them, :lol:

They are so cute and sweet!!

i would love to have one, have wanted one for a long time, but my husband said they would dig up the drip system lines, i hope you have them for a long time.

Cute

Me too, I made a child's quilt top with turtles and just assumed your's was a quilt. lol

You don't have to feel bad about what you did. You cared for them as any knowledgeable person would. Soaking and light is the best you could have done for them. As any animal in a new environment, eating is not a priority. Turtles can go for months without food. My Jose Feliciano was blinded by his cage mates and he lasted a year. I managed him to drink from time to time but he would not eat.

The breeder is the one who abused the animals. First, you don't ship during the winter when the weather is so bad. This animal are sensitive to temperature. They are cold blooded and need warm environment to regulate their body temperature. She should have labeled the box. The reason she didn't is because FeDex will not ship live animals knowingly, and that is breaking their rules. DHL would have been the right way to ship them, but again, in the spring. She shipped them because she just wanted the money and was not interested in the well being of the little guys. When I got my Sulcatas I paid half the money in February and he held them for me until May, when he was coming to the area. We met in Albany and he delivered them. He would not ship them in February. If he had hibernated them prior to sending them, they could have died because of the temperature fluctuations in the truck.

You did the right thing. Have that peace of mind. She did wrong.

When it warms up (we are having unusual weather right now for Louisiana) and we all go back outside then I will gladly take an updated picture :) The ones I have now are of them from last spring ....

Ours are going to be handed down to our children or someone that we feel would take proper care of them and if we can't find anyone then we will donate them to a zoo that needs them :)