When it comes to breeding, turtles and other reptiles do not thrive in captivity.If you love turtles and want to try and breed them on your own, you can.Check out the steps for breeding turtles.
Step 1: You need to make sure you have a male and female turtle.
A male turtle is more outgoing than a female turtle.Males and females have different plastrons that allow for more space for eggs.Females will always be larger.Males are smaller than females when it comes to water turtles.Men have long claws on their legs.Male box turtles have larger tails and a vent further from the shell than female turtles.
Step 2: Make sure your turtles are mature.
Turtles can't breed until they reach sexual maturity.Males and females need to be at least three and five years old, respectively, when it comes to water turtles.Box turtles will not breed until they are at least five years old.Don't plan to breed a turtle.Wait at least a year.
Step 3: Cool your turtles.
It's suggested that you cool your turtles.The cooling period for water turtles and box turtles needs to take place in January and February each year.Turtles can be kept at a temperature between 50 and 60 degrees for six to eight weeks.The turtles should be left alone during this time.They won't eat much if you make food available.If your turtles live in an outdoor pond, you can take advantage of the natural cooling that occurs during the wintertime.Return your turtles' habitat to its normal temperature after the cooling period is over.
Step 4: Feed your turtles.
Turtles need to eat well during the breeding season.In addition to their regular diet, be sure the females get enough calcium and D3.A healthy diet for a water turtle will include: earthworms, snails, well-washed butter lettuce, melon, bananas, strawberries, blueberries, vegetable scraps, peas, tomatoes, cooked sweet potatoes, dandelion flowers and leaves and mulberry leaves.A box turtle has the same basic diet as a water turtle, but it could also include crickets, boiled egg, corn on the cob, chopped and steamed broccoli, and lots of green leafy vegetables.If you want to meet your turtles' need for calcium, you can either feed them calcium supplements or put a Cuttle fish bone on their habitat.Turtles that are kept outdoors make a lot of their own.Turtles need exposure to a reptile light or supplement.
Step 5: Give your turtles some space.
You can't try to get your turtles to mate.Nature will take it's course if you put your turtles together.It's important that they have room to move around.Female turtles can lay their eggs if you give them plenty of space.If you have several different species of turtles, it's a good idea to separate the smaller ones from the larger ones during the mating season as some turtles become more aggressive and larger turtles can bite the heads off of smaller breeds.
Step 6: The male to female ratio is checked.
It is in the best interest of your turtles to have more females than males.Sexually motivated males can make demands that will cause health problems for females.Males may fight over a female.When your turtles are done having sex, it's a good idea to remove the males.
Step 7: There is a place to create a nest.
Provide an area for the females to lay their eggs.The female will feel safe laying and hiding her eggs there because of the soft, moist soil and some rocks and logs.If you already have an outdoor pen for your turtles, make the area within it.If you want to make it easier for your turtles to get to you, you can put a box in the larger area.Water turtles lay between two and 10 eggs.Laying takes a few weeks between clutches.
Step 8: An incubator is a purchase.
An inexpensive incubator can be used to house turtle eggs.The temperature control an incubator provides is important.Purchase a thermometer or use the one that comes with your incubator.You don't need an incubator to hatch turtle eggs.They should be kept at normal summer room temperatures.If the eggs are moist, move them to a cooler spot on hot days.You will risk overheating if you put them in the sun.If you don't use an incubator, be sure to put the nest somewhere you can see it and not forget.
Step 9: You can create a nest.
The turtle eggs' nest will be inside your incubator.It's very easy to make one with a container you already have at home and a few things from the garden supply store..You can punch air holes in the lid of a sturdy container.The deli and plastic containers in your kitchen can make great take-out containers.The lids should not be too tight.When you check on the delicate eggs, they can be hard to open.The turtle eggs will hatch when the containers are set loose.When hatching time arrives, make sure the lids are tight enough to hold the babies.It's important to keep the heat source out of the eggs..Add a mixture of vermiculite, sphagnum moss, and peat moss to your container.Take the excess water and squeeze it out.It is easy to find vermiculite at garden supply stores and some hardware stores.If you can't find all three, you should be able to create a mixture of water and materials.
Step 10: Put the eggs in a container.
Pick up the eggs carefully after the female has laid them.The embryo will be killed.Carefully position the eggs inside the depressions in the vermiculite mixture.The temperature should be between 75 and 85 degrees.To mark the top of the eggs, use a magic marker or a piece of charcoal.If eggs stick together, try to separate them.Leave them alone if they don't come apart easily.
Step 11: What is the sex of your turtle?
The sex of the hatchlings is determined by temperature.In those cases, the maximum temperature will be 85 degrees.Eggs will yield mostly males if they are kept at 75 degrees for a long time.There will be an equal number of males and females if the temperature is 80 degrees.The hatchlings will die if your incubator temperature goes into the 90's.It's better to allow the eggs to grow slowly than to kill them.
Step 12: Check the eggs.
You should check your eggs once a week for the first month and a half.You want to make sure they're moist.If they're hatching after 45 days, check them more frequently.Don't try to hurry things along.A baby turtle has an "egg tooth" that it uses to break its shell and is able to hatch on its own.If mold appears on your eggs, wipe it off with a cotton swab.The eggs are fragile once the babies start developing inside, so never pick them up to clean them.Turtles will hatch in 50 to 120 days depending on the temperature of your incubator.
Step 13: The bad eggs should be discarded.
The others should follow after one turtle hatch.If you give eggs that don't hatch a lot of time, you may have to discard some that have gone bad.There could be dents in an egg.An egg that has been leaking out the bottom is not good.It's bad if an egg collapses.After about four to six months, make a decision about the future of the eggs.
Step 14: The shells need to be removed.
Once your turtles have hatched, you should remove the empty pieces of shell from the container for the turtles who have yet to hatch.
Step 15: Relocate hatchlings.
A turtle may lay in its eggshell for a while.The last egg yolk sack is attached to its belly.Place your hatched turtles on a moist paper towel outside of the incubator.They have to be here for several days to fully absorb the yolk sack.They can either give them a home in a pan of shallow water or move them to a vivarium.
Step 16: They should be fed.
Young turtles should be fed at least once a day.Hatchlings are mostly hungry, so be sure to give them some fruits and vegetables.People have successfully raised baby turtles on a diet of Reptomin.A baby turtle's shell will be affected by an excess ofprotein in its diet.The young turtle will be fine if you catch and correct the mistake as soon as possible.The turtle will suffer a lot of pain once it gets bigger.
Step 17: Be prepared for failure.
A lot of captive-bred hatchlings will not survive their first year.Many young turtles don't survive in nature, and the same is true for turtles bred in captivity.If you've done your best, don't blame yourself if babies die, just enjoy the process.