DD1 wants terrapins! I have no idea .....advice needed please

[CarofromWton]

My DD1 (9) has decided she would love some terrapins as pets but I have stipulated that they shouldn't be difficult to look after! Could anyone with terrapins please advise me on this? Are they an easy pet or would it be cruel to keep some if you're not an expert?

Not a great idea. You definately need to research their needs. They can get to a reasonable size and will need ever increasing tank sizes to accommodate them - or a very large one in the first place, and they can be quite snappy too, though if you know how to deal with them not the end of the world. Quite specifically balanced diets required and regular water changes as the food given will contaminate the water and make it foul without regular changes. They can also carry salmonella too so hygiene is very important after handling/cleaning etc and not always well done by children. There was a big phase where kids got these some years ago after the Ninja turtles were about and many either died or were rehomed, or worse released into the wild as a last resort.
Maybe time to consider another choice?

We had one when I was a kid - I actually don't remember it being a lot of hassle - but then we did get throught some rather odd unusual pets, so that may say more about me than terrapins
Not hugely entertaining, imo, so you might want to bear that in mind. Need regular water changes, good diet, and good sized tank Can grow pretty big (ours was saucer sized by the end.
Very long-lived - so need to be more than a passing stage...(ours was passed onto us by someone who had lost interest...)

Don't even consider it- very cruel to keep these wild creatures in captivity unless you know what you are doing and can re-create their natural environment -

and as you asked 'Are they an easy pet or would it be cruel to keep some if you're not an expert?' well, the simple answers are no and yes!

Thanks everyone - I think I've got the message! Now to break it to DD1...still, there's always the dog and the goldfish!

Many thanks for your time and contributions.