Housing Your Terrapin or Turtle

When it comes to pet turtles it may seem they are all pretty much the same thing. In fact, turtles are quite differentiated and each breed and type of pet turtle has its own unique features, habits and requirements. Some of the most distinctive differences across types are the colors and markings on their shells. Land based turtles have different kinds of shells than do sea turtles or water based turtles like terrapins. Water based turtles tend to have lighter color shells, less distinctive markings and softer shells as well than the land based turtles.

The most popular pet turtles include the box turtle and the slider turtle varieties. The most common breeds of turtles, such as the yellow bellied turtles, slider turtles, mud turtles and box turtles, all have distinctive colorings and markings and an average life expectancy of about fifty years. Some have a little bit less or more, but a fair number have been known to outlive their owners. This is, therefore, something to be considered when looking for a turtle pet. You have to be willing to commit to providing for your pet turtle for a long time.

Box turtles are one of the most common types of turtles and are commonly known for their dome shaped shells. They can live on a diet of fresh vegetables like fresh leafy greens but also enjoy other foods like snails, insects, fungi, berries, slugs, roots, worms and flowers. During certain times of the season males will contend for the affections of a single female so if you're planning to own more than one pet turtle of differing genders you will have to think about that.

Mud turtles are a common breed of aquatic turtles and there are certain species of mud turtles that are normally kept as household pets. These require, similarly to the red-eared slider and the painted turtle, both a wet environment and dry environment to live in. Other common types of pet turtles include the yellow bellied turtles which also have a long life expectancy and thrive on fresh leafy greens as a major part of their diet.

Regardless of what kind of turtle you get as a pet, you will need to provide for fresh food and water as well a comfortable, climate-controlled environment for them.

Pet turtles are commonly referred to as 'terrapins' in the United Kingdom and include all kinds of turtles. However, there are some terrapins that are specific to a certain kind of environment, such as the diamondback terrapin which lives in and near brackish water. Terrapin, in the rest of the world, also refers generally to a kind of turtle that lives exclusively in fresh water. Terrapins are usually more similar to sea turtles with their webbed feet and thinner shells than to other kinds of turtles. But depending on which country you're in, like the UK for instance, if terrapin refers to pet turtle than there are many different kinds you're likely to hear about.

A quick overview of each type should give you some idea of what kind of care it would require as a pet. As far as sea turtles are concerned it's generally not easy or cost-effective to keep as pets and seeing as many are endangered you probably wouldn't be allowed to anyway. But the box turtle is yours for the taking. As is the red-eared slider, the yellow bellied terrapin and the painted terrapin. (The yellow bellied is simply a painted terrapin with a yellow plastron.) The red-eared slider is also known as the Chinese terrapin in some locales and the box turtle (in the United States) is also known as a tortoise in the UK and Australia.

The red-eared slider is a semi-aquatic reptile which means it needs both land and water masses to be comfortable and healthy. Similarly, the painted terrapin is also semi-aquatic and both types of turtles need warm temperatures to thrive in as well as a lot of natural, unfiltered sunlight daily for shell-health.

The box turtle or tortoise, on the other hand, is a purely land-based reptile and does not need water except to drink occasionally. The box turtle does, however, require much greater care while handling than the other species and it is not recommended as a pet for small children. It generally isn't recommended as a pet because box turtles must live around the area they were born in. So if you don't breed turtles and it wasn't born in your garden, don't make it live there. However, if you do get your hands on one then make sure it has an outdoor (and very safe!) enclosure as these chelonian critters need plenty of sunlight.

Apart from that, do some basic research on the kind of pet you want and the kind of habitat and care you can provide for it and, well, you're set to own a pet!