How do you raise a Chinese pond turtle to be beautiful? Is it a deep-water turtle?

The Chinese pond turtle (Mauremys reevesii) is a fairly common turtle. It is relatively large in size, and its shell is earth-yellow, making it very easy to identify. The Chinese pond turtle has high ornamental value, so it is deeply loved by people and kept as a pet. When raising a Chinese pond turtle, there are also some tips if you want it to grow beautifully. Let's learn about them together below!

How to raise a Chinese pond turtle to be beautiful

1. When raising it indoors, generally use a glass tank or another transparent container. A few stones should be placed in the container as a place for the Chinese pond turtle to come ashore and rest. The water level in the container should not submerge the Chinese pond turtle's shell.

2. The water used to raise the Chinese pond turtle should be kept clean. Change the water every other day, and the amount changed each time must not exceed half of the original water volume. Before changing in new water, it should be sunned to sterilise and disinfect it, and it must be at the same temperature as the original water.

3. For routine feeding, feed some shrimp, molluscs and insects, and a small amount of fresh vegetables. Turtle food can also be fed. No matter what, nutritional balance must be achieved. Food scraps and faeces must be cleaned up promptly.

4. When feeding the Chinese pond turtle, mostly use the method of small amounts fed multiple times. The feeding time should not exceed 10 minutes, and leftover food should be removed to prevent spoilage and deterioration from causing the water quality to worsen. You can also place it in another container by itself when feeding, so that the original water quality will not be ruined.

5. Whether the Chinese pond turtle you raise is beautiful is related to its colour development. We can influence the Chinese pond turtle's colour development through the environment, sunlight and food, so as to raise a beautiful Chinese pond turtle.

6. For the environment, choose a transparent container for raising it. For food, you can appropriately feed more shrimp. You can let the Chinese pond turtle bask in the sun in the morning and evening when the sun is not strong, or place the container in a half-shaded, half-sunny position.

7. Chinese pond turtles do hibernate. Indoor temperatures are generally above 15°C, and the Chinese pond turtle cannot hibernate, so we must provide it with a hibernation environment above 5°C and below 10°C.

Is the Chinese pond turtle a deep-water turtle

The Chinese pond turtle is not a deep-water turtle species and cannot stay in deep water for long periods, so when raising it, the water level must not be too high. When raising it, you also need to provide a floating island or similar place so the turtle can easily climb up to bask and rest.

What foods are good to feed a Chinese pond turtle

The Chinese pond turtle is omnivorous and has a wide feeding range. For animal-based food, you can feed poultry offal, pork and pork offal, and mixed feed; for plant-based food, you can feed melons, fruits and vegetables. The Chinese pond turtle likes to forage in the water. When eating, it first crawls close to the food, stares at it with both eyes, then stretches out its neck, bites the food and swallows it. If the food is too large, it uses its two front claws to tear the food apart before swallowing it.

Disease prevention for the Chinese pond turtle

1. Change the water frequently, scrub the tank body, and maintain water quality. Each time you change the water, scrub the tank body with salt. After changing the water, a small amount of salt can be added (the salt concentration should be based on whether a person can taste saltiness). A salt concentration that is too high is absolutely opposed, as is "soaking in salt water" after the turtle becomes ill. It is just like how, after a person is injured, no one soaks the wound in salt water. The turtle's body wounds can be regularly cleaned with salt water, and then it can be placed in clean water or kept dry.

2. Each time you change the water, you can gently wipe the turtle's shell and plastron with a toothbrush. This not only cleans the turtle's body, but also strengthens the interaction between people and the turtle. Erythromycin ointment is a good thing. You can also regularly use it to wipe the shell, which has a remarkable effect on preventing and treating shell rot and decay. In short, the key to preventing disease in pet turtles is water quality.

When raising a Chinese pond turtle, you must pay attention to the management of temperature and water quality. Letting it bask in the sun at the right times is very helpful for its growth. The Chinese pond turtle is not a deep-water turtle, so it must be raised in shallow water! In terms of feeding, it generally eats quite a varied diet, and many things can be eaten.