Want to buy a turtle for my daughter

i have a yellow bellied slider. red eared and yellow bellied sliders are the best to start out with i think, cause they are easy to look after and you can keep them outside in a pond in the summer.

they can be kept seperate or as with others is completely ur choice but be sure u consider the space u have avalible as females can grow up to about 12inch and males to about 10inch couldn't tell where to buy them though as i bought mine privatly.

yelllow belly sliders are probably the best for you they are not the smallest turtle but they are very hardy. i would sugest buying a 4 foot tank from the start because it will be more expensive to keep buying larger tanks every time they grow bigger. i keep two together and they do inteact with each other but they did fight a bit at first (i think it was just to sort out the pecking order) i would sugest buying a book on them first and reading up on the problems that turtles can suffer. aviod turtles with any shell problems. eg chips, cracks and softness. avoid sliders with black marks on the underside of the shell (plastron) as this is shell rot brought about by poor water quality. it can be cured though. you can get sub-adult to adult sized turtles cheeply on the internet since alot of owners are not prepared for the size they grow to. yellow bellies require a water heater, water filter, basking site outside the water with a basking lamp also a uvb bulb to promote healthy shell growth and aviod soft shell.

i would also add that although 10in for male and 12in for females is an acurate measurement this is a measurement of the plastron the actual turtle will be bigger than this from head to tail.

lastly i would add do not buy a snapping turtle under any sircumstances they are deffinitly something left to experts and fanatics

hope this helps you

sorry to add shell rot is a white fungus that grows in the spaces between the scutes and as it progreses it moves under the scutes and causes them to fall off leaving really sore pale areas i know through expirience. and a water heater isn't compleatly necessary as long as you have a warm house. a basking spot with a heat however is compleatley necassary as if ur turtle doesnt have the oppertunity to dry its shell this can also cause shell rot.

i think map are better as they dont grow as big as yellow bellied sliders