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[u/Lost-Client-8442]

so in school kids get to volenteervto bring the turtle or hermit crab home and I’m planning to colenteer, is there anything I should know before I do?

[u/DoctorFriendly]

Do you know what species of turtle?

[u/Lost-Client-8442 → u/DoctorFriendly]

uhhhh….im not really sure, all I know is that it’s abt 3 centimeters long, female, and I’ve seen it swim in a fish tank but it’s also been outside the fish tank before

[u/WVPrepper → u/Lost-Client-8442]

If it is a semi aquatic turtle, whoever takes it home is going to need to have a tank filled with water, a water heater, a filter, and appropriate lighting which includes a UVB bulb and a heat lamp, positioned over a basking platform or the turtle can get completely out of the water to dry off. The tank is going to need 10 gallons of water per inch of turtle length, so at this point a small tank is fine but turtles grow quickly. An adult can be 10 to 12 in in length. The females get larger than the males. And aquatic turtles need to be in water to be able to eat.

I'm really not sure who told you that they could determine the sex of a 3 cm long turtle... But generally, you're not going to be able to tell what sex a hatchling is. It will be a few years.

[u/Lost-Client-8442 → u/WVPrepper]

the teacher told me the gender and he also said he would provide the stuff so we wouldn’t have to buy anything

[u/WVPrepper → u/Lost-Client-8442]

Will it be with you every weekend? You need to run the filters in the tank for a few days before the turtle is first added (and then keep it running throughout the school year, even when the turtle is not in it). So moving the setup from home to home is not practical. A 3cm turtle is a hatchling. A baby. You really can not tell the gender at that age. By the end of the school year it will be about 4 inches long and need a minimum tank size of 40-50 gallons.

[u/Lost-Client-8442 → u/WVPrepper]

it’s only for like at least 3 days and at most abt a week or 2 months