North American Wood Turtles
Hatchling Care Sheet

Taking care of a one-inch wood turtle may seem like a daunting task, but as long as you follow some simple guidelines, you’ll find the experience trouble-free and rewarding. Here are a few thoughts and recommendations from my 20+ years of experience with wood turtles.

 Housing

Hatchlings are most easily maintained in plastic sweater boxes tilted 10-15 degrees and containing water in the lower end. (Water is required both for drinking and swimming or soaking.) As the hatchlings grow larger, plastic cement mixing troughs, tilted on one end, are ideal. If you want less spartan surroundings for your turtles, you can also use an aquarium raised on one end. However, most turtle enthusiasts consider plastic sweater boxes the standard living quarters for their wood turtle hatchlings. Generally, it’s not a good idea to have more than four or five hatchlings in one container; too many may result in competition for food. Also be sure to provide a hiding place: a small potted pathos plant or something similar in the upper end works well. A plant in combination with a concave piece of bark or an upside-down plastic pot with a hole cut in one side is ideal.

Hatchlings should never be kept outside, because they are vulnerable to more types of predators than you can imagine -- they face danger even from their own parents. Wait until they’re at least four inches long before you move them to that spiffy pen you built just for your turtles.

 Light

If you have a sheltered area such as a balcony or a greenhouse* that gets several hours of sunlight per day, place the box or aquarium in there. Otherwise, some form of light supplementation is necessary. Reptisun UVB 5.0 light bulbs are probably the best. If you cannot find them locally, you can get these bulbs at The Bean Farm -- a small mail-order firm that carries a variety of animal husbandry supplies for the reptile keeper. The Reptisun bulbs are available in 15"-48" lengths and should be placed about 12"-15 " above the hatchling turtles. You can also use mercury vapor UV bulbs, but remember that these give off some heat and should be used farther away from the turtles than the Reptisun bulbs.

Make sure that whatever you use for an overhead light is left on for a minimum of 12 hours per day during the fall and winter seasons. Most Native American turtles will be inclined to feed less or not at all during the winter months, especially as days grow shorter. Leaving a light on for 12-14 hours per day usually prevents this problem. Hook the light source to an air conditioning timer (available at any hardware store) so you don’t have to turn it on and off every day.

 Temperature

Wood turtles of all ages actually prefer 70-degree temperatures, but can survive extremes of heat and cold. Nevertheless, 70-75 degrees (measured in the shade) is best for a daytime temperature. Nighttime temperatures can drop as low as 60 degrees. In the summer, 80-85 degree temperatures will be fine as long as they don’t continue for weeks on end.

Winter heat can be provided in many ways: overhead light bulb, aquarium heater in the water, reptile heating pad underneath the sweater box, or similar methods.

 Food

Hatchling wood turtles are born with energy reserves from the egg, and it usually takes a few weeks to get them started eating. Their diet is varied, and once they get past the hatchling phase, they will eat out of your hand. As they get older, they typically eat a more varied diet.

When you receive your new hatchling wood turtle, do not be alarmed if it doesn't eat anything for a week to 10 days. It sometimes takes them that long to get comfortable in their new surroundings, before they'll start eating.**

Start feeding the hatchlings with earthworms, wax worm larvae, or small mealworm larvae. However, the goal is to get them feeding on non-living food such as chopped hard-boiled eggs, beef heart, chicken liver, or canned cat food. I generally feed my turtles Iams chicken cat food, earthworms, and a very high quality pelletized food available from Pacific Northwest Turtle Works. To stimulate the hatchlings' interest in non-living food, wiggle the food in front of them using a wire or thin stick.

When the wood turtles are one to two years old, you should introduce them to fruit and vegetables. Berries of all sorts and stone fruits such as peaches and plums are favorites. Don’t be afraid to try a number of different fruits and vegetables.

If you have more than one wood turtle, remove their hiding place(s) during feeding, and don't leave out the food for more than an hour or so. If you have one turtle, it is generally easy to lure it out with the food or place the food right in front of the turtle. If you are keeping multiple wood turtles, you should put their food in several locations. Otherwise, the aggressive turtles may prevent the shyer ones from eating.

Feeding your hatchlings three or four times a week is generally enough, but don’t be dismayed if they feed less frequently. Avoid overfeeding (as in every day), since it will cause deformed shells.*** You should change the water in their living quarters at least two or three times per week.

 Sex and personalities

Wood turtles do exhibit individual personalities -- some are more shy or aggressive than others. Once they get used to you and to their new living environment, they will come up to you and show a great deal of enthusiasm, hoping to be fed.

One of the questions people ask me frequently is, "When will I be able to tell male wood turtles from females?" Unfortunately, there is no way to tell until they are 4-5 inches (straight-line measurement) long.

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* If you place your hatchlings in a greenhouse, make sure it doesn’t get too hot (see the "Temperature " section for recommended temperature range), and provide a hiding place so they can be sheltered from the sun.

** Remember that they do need a hiding place, and they should see you a few times every day to become accustomed to you and their surroundings.

*** Unfortunately, most captive turtles and tortoises have ultra-knobby shells as a result of overzealous feeding.