Aro with a turtle

M

mr ry

Member
ok so im new to this... just wondering i have a 5 inch musk turtle who wont get any bigger than 5 inches... he doesnt "hang out" at the top much just wondering they should get along anything i should worry about??
 
mr ry said:
ok so im new to this... just wondering i have a 5 inch musk turtle who wont get any bigger than 5 inches... he doesnt "hang out" at the top much just wondering they should get along anything i should worry about??
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Should be fine, So long as the arowana is big enough to to fall prey to the turtle.

I"ve kept my RTG with a 5-6" map turtle without any issues the turtle came out only because i couldn't provide an adequate basing spot. Now the RTG lives with a 10" FRT and again no issues and it eliminated the basking issues.

I've also kept musk turtles in the past, they stick to the bottom of the tank, so it wont cross paths with the arowana often so they should be compatible. Although they also dont bask as frequently as some other turtle species they do still need to be able to do so keep that in mind, the tank will need to provide some sort of basking area , even if it's a piece of driftwood it can climb up onto. Musk's, like most turtles will eat fish if they can catch them. So just make sure the arowana is too big to be eaten and that u can provide some sort of basking area and they should get along quite well.
 
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-DC- said:
I've also kept musk turtles in the past, they stick to the bottom of the tank, so it wont cross paths with the arowana often so they should be compatible. Although they also dont bask as frequently as some other turtle species they do still need to be able to do so keep that in mind, the tank will need to provide some sort of basking area , even if it's a piece of driftwood it can climb up onto. Musk's, like most turtles will eat fish if they can catch them. So just make sure the arowana is too big to be eaten and that u can provide some sort of basking area and they should get along quite well.
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Ah i see thank you for the information ... and to be honest i dont have a basking light cuz in the 2 years ive owned him he has only came out of the water 4 times and the person who owned him before that never used one either never had any problems ... should i think about a basking light on a plexi glass tank and worry about the plexi warping ?
 
Mine also almost never came out to bask, they are more aquatic then some other species but i would try to provide a small area so they have the option.As for lighting, I would try to use a full spectrum lighting on the tank, I'd go with glass top over plexi i think plexi may warp with lights.

A piece of floating driftwood should suffice, they are remarkably good at climbing out onto floating objects, i'd also recommend some water lettuce as well, this will provide cover for it to surface for air, it should naturally bunch together around your floating wood allowing the turtle a secluded resting place at the surface. Plus it'll provide a natural food source for the turtle to graze on.
 
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-DC- said:
Mine also almost never came out to bask, they are more aquatic then some other species but i would try to provide a small area so they have the option.As for lighting, I would try to use a full spectrum lighting on the tank, I'd go with glass top over plexi i think plexi may warp with lights.

A piece of floating driftwood should suffice, they are remarkably good at climbing out onto floating objects, i'd also recommend some water lettuce as well, this will provide cover for it to surface for air, it should naturally bunch together around your floating wood allowing the turtle a secluded resting place at the surface. Plus it'll provide a natural food source for the turtle to graze on.
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hmmm some food for thought huh... now i have a enclosed tank only have 2 opening wich are 2ft and about 18 inch wide with an aro i cant take off the lids.... and plexi does block uv-c (or b) lighting from getting in ive been told...lol next problem
 
What I did when i had the map turtle was drop the water level a few inches, allowing me to leave the lid's on.

This also keeps the basking area nice and close to your lid , that close u could use something florescent for the UV instead of those big reptile basking lights. that way heat on the plexi wont be an issue. But in the end I didn't find it wasn't sufficient for map turtles and she started to develop shell issues which is why i switched to a FRT.

at one point I debated using larger basking lamps and switching to a secured Egg crate cover to allow the light to hit them directly but I was too worried that water splashing from my fish would eventually blow the lights out so i didn't.

Musks dont bask as often though, so the florescent might do the trick , only time will tell though.
 
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