Turtles, Baby turtle

[EllenR]

Hi Robyn, I have not been to your wonderful site in quite awhile....my life has been so hectic with 2 beautiful grandbabies every day. But I have not forgotten you!! Anyway...I thought I had another snake in my pond...my fish were all hiding and very skiddish. Until I saw a baby turles stick his head up. I was so relieved!! Since it is so very small it is of no threat to my fish. What can I feed him and is it ok to just leave him in there? He is so tiny and so cute!!

[Robyn]

Hi, Ellen! Welcome back!

I split your topic off from the other one.

Since it's been a while, how big is your pond? How big is the turtle? Do you know what species that it might be? If not, if you can post photos, we might be able to tell you. If the turtle is just a baby, it will mostly eat insects and small animals (that may include any small fish that are too slow). Turtles, of course, grow up so if it's say a snapping turtle, it would be better to move it now rather than later. If it's a slider, cooter, painted, musk, mud, etc., then it can probably stay if you don't mind an occasional fish being eaten if the turtle stays and grows up. The baby turtle should find enough food to eat if you have a natural pond with plants. They will also eat fish food. You could get some turtle food but the turtle would have to swim up to you to eat it before the fish got to it so it wouldn't be worth it. Turtles are transient so the little one may wander off at some point.

Good luck!

[EllenR]

My pond is about 800 gallons. Since I have only seen the little guy twice, and he pokes his head up and down pretty fast, I have not been able to tell if it is a slider or not. He is about a little bigger than a half dollar. If I can get a picture of him I will post it. Thanks again for your help!

[EllenR]

To my surprise, there are two turtles and they are Red eEar Sliders. Would it be best if I relocated them to a large lake in a park? Also, if I leave them in my pond, will they over winter in the pond?

[Robyn]

If they're babies, they shouldn't do much harm for a few years. Once they get over 6", they may start to noticeably eat more plants and small animals. It's up to you when/if you want to relocate them. How deep is your pond? Where do you live? Do the fish overwinter in there? If the fish overwinter just fine, then the turtles should be ok. They will need not only an opening in the ice but aeration in the winter as they absorb oxygen from the water when the pond is frozen.