Snapping Turtles

With a large head and a long tail, this snapping turtle is immensely snappy by temperament. They are actually named as snapping turtle just because of their repulsive and aggressive behavior which often urges them to bite when being disturbed or handled. As they love to stay in permanently calm places like swamps, canals, ponds, etc they hate getting disturbed. Basking is rare in these turtle but one can often see them swimming across surfaces.

An average snapping turtle grows around 18 to 20 inches with an average total weight of 45 pounds in adulthood. Exceptional cases have been observed exceeding the weight of 70 pounds. Over and above, one can spend around 40 to 50 carefree years with this pet.

The diet of snapping turtle is highly nutritive and full of vegetations. When it comes to carnivorous aspect of their life, they prefer the intake of small reptiles, tiny mammals, fishes, invertebrates, amphibians, carrions and tiny birds. When taming them, one can provide them with similar stuffs and turtle pellets can be an addition to it. One can even include waxworms, earthworms, feeder fishes, aquatic snails, lean beef meat, chicken and cricket in their diet to provide them a protein sufficient diet. Young snapping turtles should be especially being fed with daphnia, shrimp, krill and blood worms. If one is keen to introduce veggies to the young pet then butter lettuce, collards, green dandelions and mustard can be good options. Mashed fruits are also at times appreciated by the snapping turtle, but just in case you turtle is not very welcoming to it, clear the clutter within half an hour of offering it. Moreover consult the vet for necessary supplements of minerals and vitamins. Tamed snapping turtles become habitual of varied diets easily. They shall be fed almost every alternate day keeping in mind to include the vitamin or mineral diet at least once a week.

When it comes to the housing of a snapping turtle, one should be very particular about the tank capacity and the other basic requirements of the pet. A young snapping turtle requires a pen of nothing less than 20 gallons while when it reaches its adolescence or adulthood, a child’s pool would probably be a better option. They love to swim around and bask sometimes too. Preferably they love to swim in shallow water areas.

Other supplies to make the life of your snapping turtle blessed and your life tension free includes a pen/tank thermometer, pen lid, incandescent light, under tank heating source, humidity gauge, filtration system, light timer and full spectrum lighting source.

Combining the above elements and tips will help you create the comfiest atmosphere in your turtle pen but mind it this is not all. In addition to it, one must also change half of the water of the pen at least two times a week and thoroughly clean the substrates and pen at least once a week with bleaching solution. Dry the tank well and fill in unchlorinated water and then the turtle to enjoy a hassle free life ahead.