How to Love and Protect Your Pet Turtle

Who would ever suspect that taking care of a pet turtle is not the easiest thing to do in life? True, you don't have to take them for walks when it's raining or snowing, they don't bark in the middle of the night, and they won't scratch your drapes, but turtles have some special needs.

Even though the person who sold you the turtle or tortoise told you they are easy to keep, don't take their care too lightly. There is an expense to setting up their living quarters and the food doesn't come free either. It is either good news or bad news depending on how you look at it. The simple fact is turtles can live for decades!

Depending on the type of turtle or tortoise you have, they may need outside living conditions. If that is the case, you will need to provide some secure fencing that not only prevents your pet from escaping, but will keep them safe from predators. If your "buddy" is of the indoors type, they will need some sort of heat and water set up in an enclosed pen area that should be bigger than you first imagined. The indoor variety also requires more clean up. That's never a fun job.

Most of the time, your turtle can live on turtle food bought at a pet store. This will have to be modified as turtles cannot live on dried food forever. You should provide fresh food and possibly supplements to keep it in tip top health. Be aware of possible injury. Just because they are slow, doesn't mean they can't injure themselves.

Many species of turtles will need to go into hibernation and the owner should learn proper technique for dealing with this hibernating state. You will need to provide an artificial hibernation state for your indoor turtle. Your pet store or looking online via your favorite search engine will give you the details.

If you have the outdoor variety, they will naturally go into their hibernation state. Again, you need to be sure that they are safe from predators while they hibernate. Local wild animals and dogs pose the greatest threat and also flooding conditions. Be aware of too much rain water and any flooding conditions when you choose the site for the turtle pen.

Turtles cannot just be set free if and when you decide you don't want them any more. Most areas have strict laws about the selling and trading of turtles. The local authorities are afraid of a disease a pet turtle may have that may spread and affect any native turtle species. Since turtles live a long time, be prepared to care for them a long time as you cannot simply set them free.

While owning a turtle is both interesting and educational, understanding the special requirements of having a turtle as a pet is necessary when thinking about ownership. Enjoy the learning experience and share your enthusiasm with friends and family. Your pet will be with you for a long time.