What is the difference between the stone slab turtle and the Chinese pond turtle? A quick guide to tell them apart

The Chinese pond turtle is a common turtle in daily life, and many people like to keep it as a pet, so what is the difference between the stone slab turtle and the Chinese pond turtle?

1. What is the difference between the stone slab turtle and the Chinese pond turtle?

The stone slab turtle has an obvious bridge on the carapace, one longitudinal keel, and the carapace and plastron are connected by ligaments. Its overall color is mainly yellow, with a large ink-colored blotch on the outer side of each scute alternating with yellow in the middle; the Chinese pond turtle has a relatively flat carapace with three longitudinal keels, and its overall color is mainly ink-black, with dark-edged yellow stripes and yellow spots on the sides of the head and throat, a brownish-yellow plastron, and a large dark brown blotch in the middle of each scute.

2. How do you keep a Chinese pond turtle?

1. When keeping a turtle, never use tap water. If you must use tap water, leave the tap water in the sun for 2—3 days, or let the tap water settle, then use the upper layer of water to feed it. If you find that troublesome, you can buy mineral water for it (that is what I do now).

2. Turtle tank: the more it restores a natural state, the better. Buying a large tank means you do not have to change it often, and the turtles also feel free to move around. Make the tank walls a bit higher to prevent them from climbing out. Have both water and land. The best water depth is 3 times the thickness of the turtle's shell. You can spread sand and rain flower stones on the bottom and plant a few aquatic plants. Then keep a few small fish. Then make a land area. If you buy a turtle tank, it will have stairs and a land area. If it is an ordinary fish tank, just place a large stone in it. Put it in a place where sunlight can reach. This is the simplest setup. If conditions allow, you can buy a UV lamp and place it 30 cm above the turtle box to shine on it for 15—20 minutes every day. When the weather is cold and the temperature is low, buy a heating rod; a temperature of 25 degrees is suitable.

3. Water quality: if you are diligent, it is best to change the water every day, and the sand also needs to be cleaned. If you are lazy, buy a filtration system. Even then, change the water once a week. Changing the water often is very important for the turtle. Add a little salt to the newly changed water. It must not be too cold. Otherwise they will get many diseases.

4. Food: turtles are omnivorous animals, and when young they love to eat meat. You can feed them small fish, small shrimp, pork liver, bloodworms, cockroaches, and so on. Turtles generally eat in the water. After turtles get older, they love to eat vegetarian food. They will nibble on aquatic plants. You can feed them some washed vegetables. If you are too lazy to deal with all those messy things, just buy a box of turtle food and let them eat it slowly. High-quality turtle food is rich in calcium, protein, fiber, fat, vitamin A, B12, C, D3, and E. Nutritious food is definitely not very tasty. The turtles surely think so too. Feeding should be moderate; a turtle's digestive system is not very good. If the turtle is too small and the shrimp you feed are too large, you can help it chop them up. After they finish eating, scoop out the leftover food.

5. Sunbathing: when it is warm, you can put it in the sun for about 15 minutes. Be careful not to expose it to strong direct sun! The sunlight at around nine or ten in the morning and three or four in the afternoon is best. Regular sunbathing can supplement calcium and also kill bacteria in the cracks of its shell.

6. Safety: if there are also cats, dogs, and so on in the home, add wire mesh to the turtle tank. Many turtles die under the claws and teeth of cats and dogs. The turtle tank must be high enough that they cannot climb out. Note that they also cannot climb out from the stones and land area in the tank. If kept separately, remember to give them a bath every day. Prevent them from dying of dryness. When they climb to high places, be careful not to let them fall. Especially friends who keep turtles on a balcony, do not let them climb out and fall downstairs! It is very dangerous!

7. Hibernation: hibernation is very important for turtles. When the temperature is below about 12 degrees, they begin to hibernate. In the north, it is roughly from the end of October to March of the following year. It is best for newborn turtles not to hibernate in their first year, and it is best for weak and sick turtles not to hibernate.

8. Not hibernating: young turtles, weak turtles, and turtles bought during the hibernation period should not be allowed to hibernate. This is because they have not done the pre-hibernation work of clearing their intestines.