Common musk turtles?

ony · 10-19-2012, 03:18 PM

I'm looking for an animal to inhabit a relatively small tank as the space is less than 3ft (although of course I can go up and/or out too, Im considering a custom build). I would like to do something with land and water areas, pref with at least some kind of planting. Would musk turtles be a good choice? If not what critters would you guys recommend? I'm in the UK so that rules out Indian mudskippers (can't find any) and quite a few newts and frogs.

Links to reputable caresheets would be very much appreciated as it can be hard to tell which ones to trust.

PS. If anyone does know where I could source mudskippers or other interesting/suitable animals near London please speak up!

**HighDesert** · 10-19-2012, 04:15 PM

I wouldn't recommend keeping any sort of chelonian in a space that small. You might be better off with frogs of some sort. You can also try Hillfoot Aquaria in Liverpool for the mudskippers, according to a Google search I conducted. http://hillfootaquaria.com/

AVN · 10-19-2012, 04:25 PM

Yeah... not enough water to diffuse their massive amounts of waste. Also no room once they get larger, as dense plantings will reclaim the tank.

You can get away with it if you are diligent about keeping the water sparkling. But I wouldn't recommend more than one inhabitant nor larger species.

ony · 10-19-2012, 05:05 PM

I keep reading that a standard 2ft aquarium is big enough but even as a herp newbie that sounded optimistic. Very glad I took that advice with a pinch of salt, I don't want to keep anything in a cage thats too small. If I do set my heart on musk turtles what volume of water would I be looking to achieve? Where there's a will there's a way after all

I will keep that place in Liverpool in mind, but unless they would be willing to deliver its not really practical. I'd end up spending more on train fares then on the rest of the set up.

stevenjohn21 · 10-19-2012, 05:39 PM

You could keep 1 young musk turtle in a 20 gallon long (minimum) depending on the gender, males will stay small and top at around 3-4" and the female 4-5". So a 40 gallon breeder would be perfect for an adult
Just make sure you have good filtration 10x turnover is best. They are not great swimmers like the sliders,cooters species and will stay scavenging around for food at the bottom. Ive had a partially planted tank with a musk and he generally left them alone, especially at an early age due to them nly eating a protein diet.
To give him more space you may want to build a Above Tank Basking Area (ATBA) for him , they do on occassion bask and should be made available if one decides to sun bathe :-)
Good luck they are great pets and full of character once they get to know you.

This a great site for all your turtle F&Q
http://www.austinsturtlepage.com/

AVN · 10-19-2012, 05:40 PM

By standard 2ft do you mean a 10 gallon? If so, you can get one musk turtle and nothing else.

I recommend at least 20-29 gallons for a turtle tank that has livestock, otherwise you can put in small guppies or ghost shrimp for your turtle to chase down and munch on at his leisure. Mine doesn't even want to eat live food, but rather prefers veggies and the plants in my tank. Occasionally he'll pick off a poor shrimp but otherwise he leaves them all alone.

I say you build a tank as opposed to getting one, it will cost around the same with shipping minus the materials and labor, however you can build it long and shallow, as opposed to short and deep.

The water level needs to be at least 10 inches deep, but no deeper than 30 inches.

ony · 10-19-2012, 07:30 PM

I'm only considering custom because it has to fit into a specific space between my 350 liter and a radiator. An off the shelf 29 gallon could fit pretty neatly a 40 gallon is not out of the question if it was custom built for the space. Looking Austins caresheet a single stinkpot could be a good choice but I really need to do some measuring.

10-19-2012, 03:18 PM	#1
ony Planted Member (View User Tanks) PTrader: (0/0%) Join Date: Apr 2011 Location: UK Posts: 271	Common musk turtles? I'm looking for an animal to inhabit a relatively small tank as the space is less than 3ft (although of course I can go up and/or out too, Im considering a custom build). I would like to do something with land and water areas, pref with at least some kind of planting. Would musk turtles be a good choice? If not what critters would you guys recommend? I'm in the UK so that rules out Indian mudskippers (can't find any) and quite a few newts and frogs. Links to reputable caresheets would be very much appreciated as it can be hard to tell which ones to trust. PS. If anyone does know where I could source mudskippers or other interesting/suitable animals near London please speak up!

10-19-2012, 05:39 PM	#5
stevenjohn21 Wannabe Guru (View User Tanks) PTrader: (10/100%) Join Date: May 2012 Location: Atlanta Posts: 1,005	You could keep 1 young musk turtle in a 20 gallon long (minimum) depending on the gender, males will stay small and top at around 3-4" and the female 4-5". So a 40 gallon breeder would be perfect for an adult Just make sure you have good filtration 10x turnover is best. They are not great swimmers like the sliders,cooters species and will stay scavenging around for food at the bottom. Ive had a partially planted tank with a musk and he generally left them alone, especially at an early age due to them nly eating a protein diet. To give him more space you may want to build a Above Tank Basking Area (ATBA) for him , they do on occassion bask and should be made available if one decides to sun bathe :-) Good luck they are great pets and full of character once they get to know you. This a great site for all your turtle F&Q http://www.austinsturtlepage.com/ __________________ “We didn’t underestimate them. They were just a lot better than we thought.” -Bobby Robson “Football is a simple game; 22 men chase a ball for 90 minutes and at the end, the Germans win.” -Gary Linekar "Some people are on the pitch! They think it's all over! It is now, it's four!" -Kenneth Wolstenholme

Thread Tools
Show Printable Version Email this Page
Display Modes
Linear Mode Switch to Hybrid Mode Switch to Threaded Mode

10-19-2012, 04:15 PM	#2
HighDesert Wannabe Guru (View User Tanks) PTrader: (53/98%) Join Date: May 2012 Location: Santa Fe, NM Posts: 1,060	I wouldn't recommend keeping any sort of chelonian in a space that small. You might be better off with frogs of some sort. You can also try Hillfoot Aquaria in Liverpool for the mudskippers, according to a Google search I conducted. http://hillfootaquaria.com/

10-19-2012, 04:25 PM	#3
AVN Wannabe Guru (View User Tanks) PTrader: (15/100%) Join Date: Oct 2012 Location: SoCal Posts: 1,065	Yeah... not enough water to diffuse their massive amounts of waste. Also no room once they get larger, as dense plantings will reclaim the tank. You can get away with it if you are diligent about keeping the water sparkling. But I wouldn't recommend more than one inhabitant nor larger species.

10-19-2012, 05:05 PM	#4
ony Planted Member (View User Tanks) PTrader: (0/0%) Join Date: Apr 2011 Location: UK Posts: 271	I keep reading that a standard 2ft aquarium is big enough but even as a herp newbie that sounded optimistic. Very glad I took that advice with a pinch of salt, I don't want to keep anything in a cage thats too small. If I do set my heart on musk turtles what volume of water would I be looking to achieve? Where there's a will there's a way after all I will keep that place in Liverpool in mind, but unless they would be willing to deliver its not really practical. I'd end up spending more on train fares then on the rest of the set up.

10-19-2012, 05:40 PM	#6
AVN Wannabe Guru (View User Tanks) PTrader: (15/100%) Join Date: Oct 2012 Location: SoCal Posts: 1,065	By standard 2ft do you mean a 10 gallon? If so, you can get one musk turtle and nothing else. I recommend at least 20-29 gallons for a turtle tank that has livestock, otherwise you can put in small guppies or ghost shrimp for your turtle to chase down and munch on at his leisure. Mine doesn't even want to eat live food, but rather prefers veggies and the plants in my tank. Occasionally he'll pick off a poor shrimp but otherwise he leaves them all alone. I say you build a tank as opposed to getting one, it will cost around the same with shipping minus the materials and labor, however you can build it long and shallow, as opposed to short and deep. The water level needs to be at least 10 inches deep, but no deeper than 30 inches.

10-19-2012, 07:30 PM	#7
ony Planted Member (View User Tanks) PTrader: (0/0%) Join Date: Apr 2011 Location: UK Posts: 271	I'm only considering custom because it has to fit into a specific space between my 350 liter and a radiator. An off the shelf 29 gallon could fit pretty neatly a 40 gallon is not out of the question if it was custom built for the space. Looking Austins caresheet a single stinkpot could be a good choice but I really need to do some measuring.