Baby Red Eared Slider is Eating A lot?

[Katie]

I went through the EXACT same thing! Two summers ago, I adopted a baby red eared slider. I named him Bruce. He ate like a hog! Then I panicked because he was shedding skin off his neck, legs, and feet. But it's ok! Shedding his skin means that your turtle is growing. I fed Bruce up to 20 sticks a night, but I usually kept it at 12-15. However, I really recommend you supplement his food. In addition to giving him pellets every night, you can give your turtle small bits of raw hamburger, cooked chicken, low fat, low salt lunchmeat (just a little, sparingly), fruits, and vegetables. Now, I could never get Bruce to eat anything that wasn't strictly protein. Keep in mind that if he doesn't eat what you provide, it will make your water gross, so I recommend removing any food he doesn't eat within about 3-4 minutes. I'll just say that I never once had to take meat from my aquarium. Also, once your turtle gets a little bigger, you can introduce fish for him to eat. I used to buy the small feeder fish from Petco for 13 cents a piece. I would start him with just one or two. You'll have fun watching him chase the fish around the aquarium. Now, most websites will tell you that RES turtles will grow about 1 inch of carapace length (tip to tip of shell), but my Bruce grew about 4 inches the first year I had him!! Luckily, his growth has returned to a more normal pace this year. But, you WILL need a bigger aquarium soon. I bought a used 75 gallon tank that works great. You should at least start thinking about this and buy one as soon as possible. Overall, I wouldn't worry about feeding your turtle 15 sticks a day. I wouldn't do more than that, but please supplement his food as well. It doesn't have to be an every day thing. Whenever we have hamburger for dinner, I pinch off a piece of raw meat for Bruce. I do the same with cooked chicken. Jus remember, it has to be unseasoned. The pet stores also sell little cans of shrimp and stuff, but they STINK terribly. My turtle isn't crazy about them, but like I said he'll eat just about anything. Well, this is about all I can think of. Good luck with your new pet!

[Lizz]

Hello all,

I just got my baby red eared slider about 1.5 months ago. He is very active but has been eating a lot. I was usually feeding him about 6-7 (Reptomin) food sticks everyday but my mother thought it was still hungry so she started feeding him about 6 food sticks in the morning and the same amount during evening/night time. However, we started noticing that his skin is shedding from the neck area and rear and front limbs. I googled it and mostly people said that it is due to overheating or overfeeding. The websites suggested to give the turtle food sticks as much as they can eat in 15mins. My turtle easily finishes up 6 food sticks in 4-5 minutes and I'm afraid if I keep feeding him until 15mins he will easily take in about 14-15 food sticks.

Is this eating pattern normal? Do your baby turtles or turtles in general eat about 6 food sticks per day? I'm unsure how many food sticks should I give him. Because of the shedding I have reduced his meal to once a day of about 6 food sticks but it seems like he is still on top for food and always ready to eat... could it be that by feeding him 6 food sticks I am starving him? I also give him dried shrimps twice a week to vary the diet.

He's in a 10 gallon tank
I have a basking area with lamp
Water heater
Filter for a 10-20 gallon but I need to change the filter paper so I've been changing his water every 2-3 days when it starts getting bad.

Can anyone please help me about his diet? I'm unsure how many food sticks should be sufficient for a baby RES and I've tried many websites but they usually suggest to feed them as much as they can eat for 15 mins -- in that time period I believe my turtle would be eating alot.

PLEASE HELP!

[Katie]

I went through the EXACT same thing! Two summers ago, I adopted a baby red eared slider. I named him Bruce. He ate like a hog! Then I panicked because he was shedding skin off his neck, legs, and feet. But it's ok! Shedding his skin means that your turtle is growing. I fed Bruce up to 20 sticks a night, but I usually kept it at 12-15. However, I really recommend you supplement his food. In addition to giving him pellets every night, you can give your turtle small bits of raw hamburger, cooked chicken, low fat, low salt lunchmeat (just a little, sparingly), fruits, and vegetables. Now, I could never get Bruce to eat anything that wasn't strictly protein. Keep in mind that if he doesn't eat what you provide, it will make your water gross, so I recommend removing any food he doesn't eat within about 3-4 minutes. I'll just say that I never once had to take meat from my aquarium. Also, once your turtle gets a little bigger, you can introduce fish for him to eat. I used to buy the small feeder fish from Petco for 13 cents a piece. I would start him with just one or two. You'll have fun watching him chase the fish around the aquarium. Now, most websites will tell you that RES turtles will grow about 1 inch of carapace length (tip to tip of shell), but my Bruce grew about 4 inches the first year I had him!! Luckily, his growth has returned to a more normal pace this year. But, you WILL need a bigger aquarium soon. I bought a used 75 gallon tank that works great. You should at least start thinking about this and buy one as soon as possible. Overall, I wouldn't worry about feeding your turtle 15 sticks a day. I wouldn't do more than that, but please supplement his food as well. It doesn't have to be an every day thing. Whenever we have hamburger for dinner, I pinch off a piece of raw meat for Bruce. I do the same with cooked chicken. Jus remember, it has to be unseasoned. The pet stores also sell little cans of shrimp and stuff, but they STINK terribly. My turtle isn't crazy about them, but like I said he'll eat just about anything. Well, this is about all I can think of. Good luck with your new pet!