Reddit reviews Zilla Slimline Reptile Fluorescent Lighting Fixture with 3-Percent UVB Lamp, 18-Inch

That is a red eared slider. It is quite possibly the most popular pet turtle species. These turtles are popular because they're prolific and they look like little turtles, unfortunately in a few years that little turtle will have grown exponentially. Most of the time it's a parent who bought the turtle for a kid, kid loses interest, parent doesn't know what to do...

Do not release the turt. It would die in Toronto and even if it did not, environmentally if anyone releases a non indigenous species into the wild, although it sounds harmless enough there are large implications when it comes to OTHER reptile populations. This little turt could mate and create a bunch of other turts that eat up food sources etc...

1. Keep the turt as best you can
   
2. Find a home for the turt via craigslist or a rescue
   
   1A.
   
   A 10 gallon tank would be a great starter tank for a RES this size. 10 gallon tanks usually run about $10 at petsmart or petco so there is probably a similar cost up there
   
   1.B
   
   You will need two lights to run during the day:
   1 UVB fixture with a bulb
   
   and 1 heat lamp. Some people splurge and purchase heat lamp bulbs specifically made for reptiles, however I have found that using a household bulb provides the same amount of heat. User a bulb that the fixture can handle.
   
   1C.
   
   The turt will need a basking platform. There are super cool options but simple and efficient is the way to go if you're starting.
   
   1D.
   
   You will need a filter. Turtles poop a lot more than fish do so when you're shopping for filters always double the GPH needed to account for the extra nitrates.
   
   1E.
   
   You will need food. Every food is different and let me tell you from experience that you can spend hours researching what is best to feed your turtle...
   
   Protein:
   
   I have learned that omnivorious turtles such as a red eared slider do well if they are started with a protein rich diet and then transition into adulthood with an omnivorous diet.
   
   I would suggest doing the following: go to the grocery store and buy a small Salmon fillet. It may seem silly, but it will last you a very long time. Keep the Salmon in the freezer and feed the turt a few small strips (a serving size should be thought of as, if the turts head were empty, how much food could you fit in it). Make the strips small enough so that the turtle can swallow it.
   
   Feeding tip: Salmon or any other form of protein such as bloodworms, krill etc... can be quite messy because of the amount of oil in the meat. Many turtle keepers (me included) prefer to feed turtles outside of the tank in order to keep the living tank clean. get a small rubbermaid tub or something, make sure it's clean of course and fill it up with enough water for the turt to float around. feed the turt in that water, when you're done, discard the water and put the fat n happy turt back in the living tank. This method lowers the frequency of water changes and keeps the tank cleaner. Handling the turtle like this to feed is also helpful to make the turtle okay with being handled.
   
   Calcium:
   
   As you will read, reptiles need calcium in order to stay healthy. Snakes need calcium in the form of rat bones, bearded dragons eat crickets but turtles do best when supplemented with a cuttlebone. There are turtle specific cuttlebones but they're more expensive and the only real different is that they do not have the hard backing that the cuttlebones for birds have. All you have to do to remove the backing is toss it in a saucepan, boil it for a minute or so, let it cool and then that backing can peel off. This also softens up the cuttlebone some. It's not easy to get the backing off in one fell swoop, but turtles don't care if the cuttlebone is in one big piece or if it's in little white chunks. Calcium supplementation is vital for young turts just as the protein is. Once a week or so is good for calcium.
   
   I have rambled. I am passionate about reptiles so I tend to nerd out. Anyway. Please feel free to PM me with questions, I would really love to help in any way.
   
   Chad

That's for a T5 bulb, you want a hood for a T8 bulb. Then pick your size how long you need it. Then buy the T8 bulb that's 5 or 5.0 which means it's 5% UVB.

Here are some examples. If there is a plastic cover over the bulb you obviously run the light with the cover off, otherwise it blocks the UVB which is the whole reason for the bulb. You can get the bulbs at petsmart or petco if you are in the USA for around their normal price of around 20 USD just get them to price match their website price, otherwise they price gouge and literally double the price at the retail store.

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https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00L1OKNCO/?coliid=I3C699EJ1G5CZ2&colid=11G1DAPZDOOGK&psc=1&ref_=lv_ov_lig_dp_it

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0002QI86U/?coliid=I2PKG6AS6V1AL8&colid=11G1DAPZDOOGK&psc=1&ref_=lv_ov_lig_dp_it

https://www.amazon.com/Zoo-Med-Labs-Reptisun-Terrarium/dp/B06XYWQJDK/ref=sr_1_1?keywords=reptisun+t8&qid=1572724972&s=pet-supplies&sr=1-1

https://www.amazon.com/ReptiSun-5-0-UVB-Fluorescent-Bulb/dp/B000255OS6/ref=sr_1_5?keywords=reptisun+t8&qid=1572725015&s=pet-supplies&sr=1-5

The compact UVB bulbs are garbage actually. What you want is a Reptisun 10.0 fluorescent tube, which you can put in a fixture like this


You can just set the fixture on top of the screen and that'll be fine

http://www.amazon.com/Under-Cabinet-Fluorescent-Light-Stick/dp/B0026KW4QK/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1397084114&sr=8-1&keywords=24+flourescent+light+fixture

http://www.amazon.com/Energy-Savers-Slimline-Terrarium-Fixture/dp/B0002QI86U/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&qid=1397084114&sr=8-4&keywords=24+flourescent+light+fixture

http://www.amazon.com/Lights-America-7020-Fluorescent-Light/dp/B00004WA4D/ref=sr_1_6?ie=UTF8&qid=1397084114&sr=8-6&keywords=24+flourescent+light+fixture