Housecleaning: The Art of Maintaining a Clean Environment for Your Turtle

Yuk! This was probably the worst thing about keeping my turtles, but if you plan on making sure that your herp lives a good life, you’d better take some time to clean their living area.

Keeping their environment as clean as possible is a very important part to caring for your herp, because they can be particularly susceptible to infection and disease.

How often you clean, disinfect, and sterilize depends on the type of herp you have – for example, terrestrial, aquatic, or semiaquatic. Here’s what you need to know:

For aquatic or semiaquatic turtles – Every two weeks, change between 30 and 60 percent of the water; a sponge filter will help keep the water clean. Once a month, disinfect the tank and change the water completely. To remove algae, scrub the aquarium walls with a brush. Do not use any cleaning agents to clean the tank as that will infect their water.

For terrestrial turtles – Clean their cage once a week, changing the substrate and disinfecting the terrarium. Provide a water dish large enough for him to soak in but shallow enough to allow for an easy exit. Be sure to change the water daily.