Red eared slider feeding schedule

The red-eared slider is a popular variant of turtle which is famous as a pet for a long time. You can found them in almost all the pet shops due to their immense popularity. One of the impressive thing about the red-eared slider is they are a resilient creature, and they can tolerate live in different types of condition. More so, they are also comfortable around the people when compared with the other turtles.

Typically, the red-eared sliders are voracious eaters and always looking for the food. As they are omnivorous, they can eat both the vegetable and animal protein as given. However, the juvenile or the baby red-eared slider are carnivorous, and they require animal protein. They become omnivorous as they grow and eat both types of food.

Foods of red-eared slider feeding schedule

When the red-eared sliders are in the wild, they eat a variety of things. You may not provide all the foods that they had in the wild; you will require giving them some of the options. 

Animal protein diets

The diet of the carnivorous portion for the turtle’s diet should include commercial fish and turtle pellets. More so, the food should consist of both invertebrates and vertebrates. Pelleted meals usually arrive in various shapes. As the bigger shapes float well on the water then can be the right choice for the small or juvenile turtles.

You can also provide fish to the red-eared slider. The suitable fishes for feeding can be found in the pet or the bait stores. You can use a variety of fishes depending on the size of the turtle. Some of the popular choices may include guppies, goldfish, and minnows. It will be better to feed live fish to the turtle to simulate their wild environment. The turtle will also get some exercise by chasing and catching the fishes.

However, if you want, you also feed them as dead. It will benefit if you’re going to buy a large portion and store them for long-term feeding. This also allows you to buy bigger fish and cut them into a suitable size for the turtle. You can then feed the turtle by thawed the fish in the tank as required. However, don’t always feed frozen feed to the turtle as it will be hard to consume the entire fish.

You can also feed a variety of prey items to the red-eared slider. They may include cricket, earthworm, waxworm, bloodworm, daphnia, shrimp, krill, mealworm, aquatic snails, etc. If the turtle is very small, then you can cut the items into smaller pieces so that they can easily consume the food. Make sure that you are not feeding the feeder fish to the turtle as they may include huge parasites and fats.

Vegetable Diet

The vegetable diet is also extremely vital for the turtles. Here are some of the best vegetable feeds for the red-eared slider.

You can feed the leafy greens to your red-eared slider. They may include collard greens, mustard greens, kale, dandelion greens, bok choy, etc. Never feed the head lettuce to the turtle as it consists of a little portion of nutrition. However, you can feed the dark green leaf lettuces sparingly. Be sure that you are feeding items that include adequate phosphorus and calcium level.

The red-eared slideris a big fan of the aquatic plants. There are a variety of plants that you can put in the turtle tank. Notably, the submerged plants, including the anacharis, are more preferred by the turtle. You can also use water lettuce, duckweed, hyacinth, Azolla (fairy moss), frogbit, etc. foods. Carrot, carrot tops, green beans, squash, etc. also work well. 

Red eared slider feeding schedule

As we said earlier, the red-eared slider seems like always begging for food. They have voracious appetites; they are always looking for the food. But it is vital to make sure that you are not over-feeding the turtle. Mainly, you need to be extra careful about overfeeding the protein and fat. It is better to feed the turtle for once in three days. You can also feed them on a smaller amount daily.

How often you should treat the turtle will depend on its body condition. If you find that folds of skin developing around the turtle’s leg when they pull the legs into the shell, then they are getting fat. In such situations, you should feed them a smaller quantity of food and less often. Also, feed foods that include less amount of fat. If you find the turtle overly hungry, then you can feed them the plant material and leafy green vegetables instead of the pellet feed.

Try to feed the turtle in a separate container if you have multiple turtles. It will allow you to monitor the turtles feeding and acknowledge how much and how fast the turtle is eating. Another rule of thumb is to let the turtle eat for around fifteen minutes.

Also, make sure to maintain the proper water condition as the turtle drink, swim, and live in the same water. Make sure the water filter you are using is working correctly and capable of cleaning the amount of water in the tank.

How old is my red-eared slider?

It is essential to determine the age of the red-eared slider to offer them suitable feeds. Depending on the age of the turtle, there can be three types of the red-eared slider which are the hatchling, juvenile, and adult. The hatchlings are these who are less than six months old, and the shell is 2-3 inches and looks bright green.

On the other hand, the juvenile can be up to 2 years old, and the shell size will be around 4 inches. The shell of the juvenile turtle will be dark green and brown. Finally, the adult turtles are two years plus and their shell is around 4 to 12 inches. The shell is usually deep brown and deep black.

In above, we mentioned the feeding schedule of the red-eared slider in brief. You can rely on this information as per the age of the turtle for feeding them.

To know more you can follow here: https://www.quora.com/How-often-should-I-feed-my-red-eared-turtle