FAQ’s

Terrapins non native (sliders) / Turtles (map,musks :ect ) / Tortoises / Spiders / Stick-Insects / Water Dragons / Bearded Dragons / African Land snails

As from the 24th of April 2024 we became rspca approved,  This means they can bring animals that need a home to us.

We will be sending our paper work in to become a registered charity once we find new person to join us

We do not need this type of licence as we are a recue centre and rehoming centre. We do not buy and sell animals like pet shops.

Yes we have a heated pond this is always on.

Yes we have several heat lamps around the pond. They turn off automatic when the ambient temperature is 16.5c or below

Yes we have uv lights around the ponds and all tortoises have uv lights

No sorry we are a non profit rescue centre for Animals.

We do have a small online shop to help raise funds for the rescue

We can make you a cold drink if you need one when you are here with your Animal.

A small donation box will be here if you would like to help.

We offer this at a price of 50p for a small bag of terrapin mix

As we have loads of Animals in our care, We can not offer this. But we have a way for you to check on them via our live cams.

All of our terrapins/turtles live outside in heated ponds. Currently we have two ponds, a large one for the larger species of terrapins/turtles e.g. sliders, and a smaller pond for smaller species e.g. musks. We also have a quarantine pond for ill cases.

We do rehome some turtles like the musk turtles and map turtles. We would never put sliders (Yellow Bellied, Red Eared, Cumberland Sliders) up for rehoming as it is illegal to rehome them so they will remain here at the rescue for the rest of their lives.

We will only allow turtles to be adopted by people who have the right knowledge and experience of looking after turtles. We will also only let turtles be adopted if the person can provide a set up as good as or better than us. This includes UV lighting and basking lights and the right size enclosure for the animals size.

We will require proof of any potential homes for turtles, we don’t come out for home visits but we do expect you to agree to a video call so we can check you have everything the animal requires.

All the Turtles get along just fine with each other. We make sure to provide them with enough space to move around and get away from each other if needed. Turtles can show signs of aggression if they feel boxed in and too crowded. If we do see an aggressive turtle it gets removed from the pond and is housed separately in isolation.

Both of the ponds are heated throughout summer and winter. During the winter the water is maintained at 23.5 degrees. In the summer the heater gets turned down but we leave it on to ensure the temp stays around 23 degrees through the cooler nights.

We made the decision to put a roof over the ponds mainly to protect the turtles through winter and bad storms, the addition of a roof provides them with a more stable ambient temperature throughout the year. It is also very beneficial to turtles as they don’t have rainwater affecting the PH level of the water in the pond.

Since we have added the roof we are aware that the amount of UV the turtles are receiving is considerably low so we are putting UV lighting across the roof to make sure they get the right amount that they need.

All the turtles are fed a dried food mix which we make ourselves. The full list of what is in the food is available on our website at ftrescue.co.uk/terrapin-food

They also get fresh lettuce and cucumber a few days a week, and as a treat they occasionally get fresh uncooked prawns.

The likelihood of you being able to find your Terrapin/turtle in the pond is very slim as there are so many of them and they all look very similar to each other.

If we spot any eggs that have been laid we DO NOT incubate them. We will remove them and place them in a lidded container they will then go in the freezer for 48 hours, afterwards they are disposed of appropriately. This is the most humane way of preventing breeding.

No, we do not allow anyone to hold or touch any of the terrapins/turtles due to the risk of infection, and they are also prone to biting/nipping.

We absolutely cannot allow anyone in the enclosure without suitable footwear. In the enclosure there are lots of terrapins/turtles walking around freely and they may decide to try and have a bite of your foot when walking past. You also have a higher risk of tripping and falling when wearing incorrect footwear.

We insist that all children are accompanied by an adult and kept very close by your side due to the risk of injury to your children. We do not take responsibility if your child gets bitten or scratched by a terrapin/turtle. There is also a chance that a young child could be spooked or trip over and fall into the pond so keeping them close and safe is something that must be strictly enforced. If you do not follow the rules we will deny you entry into the enclosure.

We currently have a variety of different species at the rescue these are:

• Yellow Bellied Slider (Invasive Species)
• Red Eared Slider (Invasive Species)
• Cumberland Slider (Invasive Species)
• Mississippi Maps
• Chinese Striped
• Chinese Pond
• River Cooters
• Painted Turtle
• Musks
• Reeves
• Side neck
• Common Snapping Turtle

Although some people find it distressing to see terrapins/turtles on their backs it is very important that they are left alone for a short period of time to try and turn themselves over. The reason we leave them is because as a rescue we strive to have their enclosure as close to their natural environment as possible. When in the wild they have no choice but to turn themselves back over as there is nobody around to do it for them. When they are upside down we watch and wait and will only intervene when absolutely necessary. We have previously noted that sometimes other terrapins/turtles will help their friends to flip back over as well.

If you are bringing your terrapin/turtle into us and if it is ill or injured we will ask that you pay a contribution to any treatment that it needs. It is a one off fee that helps us to be able to care and treat appropriately, as we have so many terrapins/turtles in our care. We could not continue to look after them otherwise.

We charge you to bring your animal to us as this helps us to care for your terrapin/turtle. All money that comes in goes towards there heating, food and vet bills (if needed). This is especially important with the invasive species as when they come here they have to remain here for the rest of their lives.

We cannot do personal updates even if yours is very identifiable. We do not have the staff or the time to sit and give out personal updates. Also, if we did it for one person we would have to do it for everyone so we just do not do it at all. You can however watch our live cams and see if you can spot your terrapin/turtle on one of them.

We decided to house them all together as it’s a much better way of utilizing the space we have available and it allows us to take in a lot more terrapins/turtles. We did used to use tanks but with the amount of turtles we have coming in, it is just not possible to continue using tanks.

We decided to add a smaller pond just for the musk turtles as we noticed some of them struggled with the depth of the main pond. The main pond is 4ft deep whereas the musk pond is 1ft so its much easier for them to move around and get out of the water when they decide they want to bask.

You can donate to us through our website. If you go on to the website and press the donate button it will then give you an option on how to donate. You can use paypal/bank transfer or buy something from our amazon wishlist which we update regularly.

Yes, you can. You can set up a monthly payment or you can do multiple amazon gifts from our wishlist. Every donation goes straight towards the terrapins/turtles care.

The rescue has been running for 6 years.

Although you might have kept 2 terrapins/turtles together for many years when they come here they do not stay with each other. If they are separated for a few weeks and then go back together they don’t show any signs of remembering each other. Terrapins/turtles are by nature solitary animals; they will happily live together with enough space but they do not form friendships or relationships.

Yes, the snapper is perfectly capable of exiting the water to bask on the platform, however he currently is very shy and will only come out if its really warm and sunny and will often jump back in if he is spooked by someone walking past.

Yes, we do have to top up the water every so often, it drops roughly 2 inches a week but we like to frequently top it up anyway to ensure the water quality remains clear.