Expert: Chelsey - 9/12/2006

Question
Hi Chelsey,
Well...It's official! I have two baby RED EARED SLIDERS (not yellow bellies, as I was told when I bought them). At least now I know.
After reading your response, I'm more sure I have their tank set up properly. I do have a water heater as well as a light. The water temp. is around 78 degrees and the basking area is between 85 & 88 degrees. I also have a cuttle bone for calcium. When the one is not swimming it is in the dry basking area under the light. It also often burrows into the gravel a bit.
When I first noticed it sleeping a lot, I also noticed bubbles coming out of it's nose sometimes. Like when you have a cold, so maybe that is the problem. I think a visit to the vet is a great idea and have already made an appointment. I did notice, last night, it was much more active and eating better, so maybe it is on the mend. We'll still see the vet., just in case.
Anyway...Thank you so much for your help!!!!
Have a great day,
P. Nickerson
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Followup To

Question -
We have 2 baby sliders. Some say they're yellow belly sliders, others say they're red eared. Please clarify, I thought the two where one in the same. Anyway, my question... One of ours swims constantly, eats well and in general seems good and healthy. Our other one sleeps constantly and eats just okay. It doesn't appear sick, but I'm not sure if this is normal behavor and I don't know what to do. Can you help? Thanks!!!

Answer -
Hi!
Yellow bellies and red eared sliders have a very similar body structure, and many consider them to be very close relatives... some people have even tried making crossbreeds. The only major difference is the coloration...which is in the name!  Red eared sliders are bright green as babies (they get darker as adults and normally get some more brown in them) and have a red streak on the sides of their heads, right around where you would imagine it's ear to be (Red Eared Slider!).
Yellow bellied sliders are mostly or all black on the tops of their shells, but if you look at their bellies, it is bright yellow (Yellow Bellied Slider!).

If they don't seem to be either of these, send me another message describing the colors, and I can tell you what it is.

Now for the turtle's health. When the turtle is just sitting around not swimming, is it under a light? Turtles need to bask in light and have UV rays to let the calcium they eat work properly. If there is a light, then it is probably trying to warm up. Do you have a heater for the water in your tank? It might not like going in the water if it is too cold. If you don't have either of these, get them. Keep the water temperature from 75 to 80 degrees.
Keep the light above the dry land area.

Your turtle could be sick. Turtles are very hearty, and when it comes to bbeing sick, you almost don't know until it's too late. It is eating, so it might just have a cold or something. But if it stops eating, it's definatly sick. That is the first sign of not eating. It could also be a lack of calcium/ lighting. Even if you have been giving them food filled with calcium and good lighting, the people that had them before might not have been. Especially if you got them from a turtle farm or flea market. You might want to bring the little guy in for a vet check to be safe, and bring the healthy turtle in to be looked at as well, even though he/she is healthy. If your turtle is sick and is contagious, the healthy turtle might become sick as well. They might give them each a shot.
They can probably tell you the sex of your turtles, but it might be too early for that.

Hopefully your turtle is healthy and will start to become more active. Good luck! I hope my info helped you out>

Best wishes, Chelsey

Answer
Im really happy everything is going smoothly. It's awesome you are taking them to the vet, a lot of people don't because they don't want to spend their money on an animal that doesn't cost a lot to purchase, which is horrible. Your a dedicated owner, and I give a lot of credit to you!!! Your tank set up sounds perfect, and It's great that your turtle seems to be getting better. Your vet will give you any meds they might need.
I'm glad to see my info helped with figuring out their species, Red Eared Sliders are adorable!
You might want to consider breeding when your turtles become adults. It would be a really fun experience!
Your turtles will have a very happy life, I can tell!
Best wishes, Chelsey