Buying an African Helmeted Turtle as a Pets

A new pet is always a tough decision. Bringing home a dog or cat has with it certain liabilities that are obvious even to the first time pet owner – food, health, training, love and so forth.
Pet turtles, for instance, are not as ‘hands-on’ as cats or dogs but keeping one is still not a commitment to be entered in to lightly.

When buying African helmeted turtles as pets you need to take out the time to research what it is to own a turtle and all of the care and dedication that it will take to make sure that your turtle remains healthy.
Consider the type of turtle that you want. There are a few types to choose from. Your standard turtle that most people enjoy keeping as pets are amphibian aquatic turtles. They live on land and on water, have webbed feet for swimming and can grow as large as a foot in length.



Take the time to learn about turtles

When it comes down to selecting a turtle you should consult the internet as it is a great resource for pretty much everything. You can also ask the pet specialist at your local pet store besides which there are plenty of books available on the subject of turtles, which one to choose and how to take good care of it.
Once you know your turtle, you know its habitat, its feeding needs and its other requirements. First and foremost you’re going to need some kind of aquarium or living space for the turtle.
You need enough water for the turtle to swim around in occasionally as well as a ‘basking’ ground for it to sunbathe in.
Remember, as the turtle grows the water level and the ground area will need to grow a little with it.
You can use small pebbles and stones for the basking ground and either keep the turtle outside in the sun (if it’s safe!) or buy a reptile ultraviolet, or UV, lamp. Turtles love their sunbathing – why do you think they lay their eggs on the beach!
Some turtles, as in the baby slider turtle salmonella crisis back in the 70s, can carry diseases so be very careful to wash your hands right after handling them. In fact, handle them as little as possible and if it’s a baby turtle, or four inches and smaller in length, try not to handle them at all.
Remember, turtles are very special animals and many are now an endangered species. If cared for properly they can live for many decades, some up to a hundred years, and can even outlive you! (So keep a contingency plan ready when buying turtles as pets…)

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Are Pet African Helmeted Turtles Right For You?

Buying a pet is always a tricky decision for a family. It’s hard to decide what kind of pet would be suitable with smaller kids around, whether the new pet on the block will get along with possible other pets or if visitors are going to feel threatened.
On top of which you’ve got genuine health concerns, possible allergies and, of course, the care and feeding of the animal itself to think about. 

And finally, if the pet is for a child the likelihood that the child will be able, and willing, to take on the responsibility of handling the animal and all the duties that go along with it needs to be accounted for.

Keeping the above in mind, many families tend to opt for a starter pet. They include such animals as rabbits, gerbils, guinea pigs, ferrets, mice and reptiles; animals considered low-cost and low-maintenance.
Which is not necessarily true of course but it is usually less of a handful than, say, a dog. And if you would like to start with a ‘starter,’ a great choice for you could very well be a turtle (or terrapin, if you’re in the United Kingdom). 

Pet turtles and terrapins make the perfect pet

In fact, picking up a book about the chelonian critters should give you a great idea of what is out there in terms of a pet and how best to take care of it. Once you’ve got the fundamentals of turtle pet-care down it’s a breeze. For instance, there are four major categories of ‘turtle’ you should have a basic understanding of: turtle, sea turtles, terrapins and tortoises.

The turtle is your basic reptile-in-a-shell that you keep as a pet. It cannot live or breathe underwater but is amphibious and likes fresh water. This includes the red-eared slider and the painted turtle (both amphibious) as well as the box turtle (fully terrestrial).
It is also known as a terrapin in the United Kingdom where the word ‘turtle’ normally refers to the sea turtle which is not kept as a pet.
Sea turtles live in every ocean of the world except the Arctic and can easily grow to be, well, huge at two meters long!

Finally, tortoises are essentially the above mentioned terrestrial turtles but are simply called tortoises in the United Kingdom and Australia and box turtles in the United States.
There are terrapins (different to turtles) that live in brackish water but these are called ‘diamondback terrapins’ everywhere and are not in common usage when talking about pets. 

Buy a turtle and make your life more complete

Going to the pet store to buy a turtle, and related paraphernalia, is the next step. Once you know what kind of turtle you want you will be able to buy the proper habitat for it as well. You wouldn’t want a tortoise in a turtle habitat because the poor thing would simply drown.

Next, feeding a turtle is the same as buying it a habitat: identification. Some turtles like to eat minnows and others are perfectly content with little pellet snacks, insects and so forth. Most turtles will also eat a great deal of greens which you can easily arrange for.

Finally, like any other animal you have to handle turtles with care. Despite their appearances turtles are quite fragile and they need their shells to live. They are not like hermit crabs that can find any shell that fits to live in if theirs is removed. For a turtle, the shell is attached, stays attached and grows with it.

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About The African Helmeted Turtle

The African helmeted turtle or Marsh terrapin (Pelomedusa subrufa), is typically a rather small turtle with most individuals being less than 87.9 cm in carapace length, but one has been recorded with a carapace length of 132.5 cm. it has an black or brown carapace (shell). The tops of the tail and limbs are a grayish brown, while the underside is yellowish. The male turtle is distinguished by its long, thick tail. Females tend to have a shorter tail and a broader carapace. Hatchlings have a shell size of about 1 and 1/4 inches in length, and are olive to black in color. It also has two small tubercles under the chin and musk glands in the sides of the carapace. The African helmeted turtle doesn't have a hinged plastron (lower shell). All the other species in the family Pelomedusidae however have this feature which they can, using muscles, close to cover their head and front limbs.

Diet

The African helmeted turtle is omnivorous and will eat almost anything. Some of the main items in its diet are insects, small crustaceans, fish, earthworms, and snails. They may also feed on carrion. The fine claws on its feet help it tear its prey apart. Groups of these turtles have been observed capturing and drowning doves when they come to drink.

Habitat

The range of Pelomedusa subrufa spreads over a large portion of Africa. It can be found as far west as Ghana and as far south as Cape Town. It has also been found in Madagascar and Yemen. They are semi-aquatic animals, living in rivers, lakes, and marshes, and they also like rain pools and places that are fertilized.

Breeding

Courtship is held all over the year. The male will follow the female nodding his head in front of hers. If she is non-responsive she will nip and snap and walk away. If she is willing, she responses nodding her head or just stands still, he can sit onto her. While mating both of the turtles shake their head.

The female will lay 2 to 10 eggs on average, normally during late spring and early summer. The eggs are placed in a flask shaped nest that is about 4 to 7 inches deep. The eggs hatch in 75- 90 days.



Source: Wikipedia 

Tags: pets, pet, pelomedusa, aquatic turtles, exotic species, turtle red ear, red eared tortoise, African turtles, African turtle, pet turtles, African helmeted turtle, reptiles, shell, diet, habitat, breading, pelomedusidae, Pelomedusa subrufa