How Do You Keep a Turtle? Four Methods to Help You Identify a Turtle's Age

The turtle is one of the Four Symbols of China, and because turtles are long-lived, people today like to keep them as pets. Of course, many people think turtles are easy to keep and do not require much effort. So, as a beginner, how should you keep a turtle?

I. Introduction to Turtles

1. What does a turtle look like?

The turtle is a reptile. Its body is divided into the head, neck, torso, tail and four limbs. Unlike other animals, it has a shell. Its shell is made up of an arched carapace and a flat plastron. The shape is generally oval, and the color is nearly black or brownish. Once startled, its head and feet can retract into the shell.

2. What does the turtle symbolize?

The turtle is one of the Four Symbols of China (dragon, phoenix, turtle and qilin), a symbol of good fortune and longevity, and a treasure for warding off evil and blocking misfortune, averting disaster and harm, and securing the household and attracting wealth. In ancient times, turtle shells were used for carving characters, which later became oracle bone script; the ancients used the turtle in naming, representing “longevity” and “nobility”; in the Han Dynasty, civil and military officials of the fifth rank and above were granted turtle-knob seals, and even the military tally used to mobilize troops was called a turtle tally, because the golden turtle was the official seal of high officials, so if a woman's husband held a high office, he was called a golden-turtle son-in-law; Daoists believed that exhaling slowly like a turtle could prolong life, which is the so-called “turtle breathing” method.

II. How Do You Keep a Turtle?

1. Keeping site

You can prepare a storage box or a glass tank. The turtle tank should not be round, as that will make the turtle lose its sense of direction; put a hiding spot and a water circulation system in the tank, and if conditions do not allow, change the water frequently; there should be a basking platform in the tank so the turtle can climb up and bask in the sun. Beginners should not buy turtles that are too small. After bringing one home, keep it in shallow water to rest for 3 days and observe whether it is sick. Start feeding after three days.

2. Food feeding

Turtles have a fairly broad diet. Whether it is rice, wheat, peas, or small fish, small shrimp, insects, pork and so on, they all eat it. For balanced nutrition, do not feed a single kind of food; you can feed a mixture; for easier digestion, corn, peas, pork and so on should be crushed or chopped before feeding; so that the turtle does not get sick, the food should stay fresh, and leftover food should be removed promptly. If it is spring or autumn, feed at 8-9 in the morning; if it is summer, feed at 16-17 in the afternoon; if it is winter, the turtle will hibernate, so you can stop feeding. When feeding, pay attention to feeding at a fixed spot and in fixed amounts, generally once every 1-2 days.

3. Daily management

When the turtle first arrives, there should be water in the turtle tank, generally just slightly higher than the turtle's shell; the water is generally kept at a constant temperature and must not go hot and cold; the water must not be straight tap water, and it is better to leave it in the sun for two days first; change the water frequently, generally once every two to three days, and when changing it, just replace two-thirds of the water; do not feed in the water, as it will pollute the water environment. Turtles need to bask in the sun, but the time should not be too long. Basically, 15-20 minutes is enough, and do not expose them to strong sun. Turtles can also get sick, so pay attention to prevention and treatment.

III. How Do You Identify a Turtle's Age?

Turtles live a very long time. How do you identify their age? Here are several methods, but they can only estimate a turtle's approximate age.

1. Look at the abdominal scutes: turn the turtle over and look at its abdominal scutes. Each abdominal scute has circular lines, and one ring represents one year.

2. Look at the shell: turtles generally have thirteen shell scutes, and each shell scute has rings, with one ring representing one year.

3. Weigh it: about 15g is 1 year old, about 50g is 2 years old, about 100g is 3 years old, and about 200g is four years old.

4. Look at the color: if the color of the patterns on the turtle's back is dark and clear, then it is older; otherwise, it is younger.

Summary: As long as you manage factors such as temperature, diet, sunlight and water quality well, you can keep a turtle well. If you want to know a turtle's approximate age, you can use the above 4 methods. If you want to know a turtle's exact age, you can raise one yourself; however many years you have kept it is how old it is.