Res Rescue

[Brandi.]

Yesterday, my mom's boss found a RES roaming around her yard and picked it up. They went door-to-door to try and find his owner, and even down the street to the river, with no luck...

He is now in my possession (probably will be adopted by me). Overall, he seems healthy, other than a couple small chunks missing from his shell near his head. He is currently quarantined in a large tub until we can either find his home or purchase and set up a home of his own.

I own a very small RES (less then 4 in.), and this turtle is about 6 in. or so.

My question is, when can I take the bigger RES off of quarantine, and when would it be okay to move the baby in with the larger one??

 

[karawr]

That RES could be wild (and not someone's escaped pet) and best just to let go.

If you plan on keeping it, you will most likely have to separate forever, especially if either of them is a boy. Or if you have a boy and a girl, you could be dealing with turtle eggs.

Male RES can be very aggressive and do not like company. If two turtles grow up together they might have a better chance of getting along, but generally once older they will not like it. The bigger one will most likely kill the one you currently have. I would not put them together.

If you do put them together, you need at least a 120g tank. You bigger the better, especially with two males (so they can have their own space). One female res alone needs 120g full grown.