If you own a cat or dog, you probably love cuddling and hugging them as a gesture of love and affection. While most pet owners get attached to their owners and vice versa, you might wonder how it works for turtles. Do turtles feel the same way about their owners?
Remember that turtles do have emotions and can feel a sense of affection towards their owners. Once a turtle starts to recognize and trust their owners, they build up an emotional bond with them. However, this expression can be displayed quite differently as compared to other pets.
Do Turtles Get Attached To Their Owners?
Yes, turtles do get attached to their owners. They can sometimes express their emotions by showing playful behavior when they are around their owners.
Turtles are often considered to be sluggish creatures, however, when you show a gesture of love and affection towards them, you will find that they are super friendly and can move at a much quicker speed when prompted. This is especially true when you feed them.
Remember that turtles very keenly observe the person who provides them with food and water and other basic amenities. If you are the only person who does all the care for the turtles, they will feel greatly attached to you. If you just got a turtle, you should check out my article on how much to feed a turtle.
Will Your Turtle Recognize You?
Recognition is the first step when it comes to the attachment of turtles with the owner. Obviously, no one can feel attached to someone he/she does not know or recognize.
Turtles can recognize their owners, but it can take some time to understand who the primary owner or caretaker is. For instance, if you live in a household where different people alternate feeding the turtle, it might take some time for the turtle to distinguish one specific person.
However, you can deepen your relationship with your turtle by periodically taking it out of the tank.
If you are interested in getting a pet turtle, you should check out my list of the most important turtle tank accessories.
How Do Turtles Perceive Their Owners?
Turtles use their sense to perceive and recognize their owners.
Sense of sight
Turtles try to inculcate your size and shape in their minds and use the power of vision to identify their owners. The vision turtles is very similar to that of humans, so they can see very clearly who is taking care of them.
Sense of smell
Nature has gifted turtles with the remarkable ability to recognize the owners with their scent. Turtles are able to pick up your scent whenever you put your hand in the tank.
Sense of hearing
Many people are not aware that turtles can hear. In fact, turtles also have a very keen sense of hearing. They might be able to hear you talking from another room. The life of a pet turtle can be pretty dull sometimes, so they enjoy listening and taking in all the sounds around them.
How Do Turtles Show Affection?
The way of expressing love and affection in turtles is very different from cats and dogs. Like other pets, they never run towards you or give you a warm hug. Turtles usually show affection to their owner by following them around with their eyes or head. If you walk in the room, an affectionate turtle will immediately start to follow you with their eyes.
For example, if you approach your turtle tank on one side, your turtle will likely swim or walk over to that side to meet you. They do this to show affection, and some also do this to beg for food.
Turtles also show affection by rubbing their head and neck against their owners. This is a natural behavior that turtles do in the wild. When a turtle rubs their head up against you, it means they trust you and want to show their affection for you.
A turtle that feels affection for their owner will also like to follow them around. For example, if you set them on the ground, they might keep inching closer and closer to you.
Strangely enough, some turtles will also enjoy it when their owner pets their shell. However, not all turtles like this so you should be careful. Start out by gently stroking their shell, and if they do not walk away, you can continue.
If your turtle doesn’t show you affection, there’s no need to worry. Most turtle’s are solitary animals and don’t get lonely, so they will be happy as long as you keep their tank clean and feed them.
How to get your pet turtle to like you?
The key to getting your pet turtle to like you is consistency. One of the most important things is to consistently feed them. This is the fastest way to get your turtle to respect you and your presence. This is because they will start to associate your presence with a positive action.
On a similar note, turtles absolutely love treats. In between feeding times, you can slip your turtle a treat or to. This will certainly help your turtle to like you.
If you want your turtle to like you, you should also try to play with them at least every day. I would recommend taking them out of the tank. Turtles love to be out and the open and cherish any moment they can escape their tank. When you take your turtle out of the tank, make sure all other pets are blocked off. Your turtle will probably roam around the room and might even start to follow you.
Another way you can get your turtle to like you is to not be too loud around them. As I mentioned earlier, turtles have a very strong sense of hearing. If you make a lot of noise in or around their tank, it might cause them to get very stressed.
How do I know if my turtle is attached to me?
You can tell if your turtle is attached to you if it follows you around the tank with its eyes, swims over when you approach, rubs its head on you, or enjoys being pet. You can test this out by having someone stand on the other side of the tank to see if your turtle decides to swim over to you or the other person.
What should I do if my turtle doesn’t seem to like me?
Don’t worry if your turtle doesn’t show a lot of affection – many turtles prefer to be solitary. In fact, my turtle still hisses at me every time I try to pick it up. Focus on keeping its habitat clean, feeding it a proper diet, and avoiding loud noises that may stress it out. Over time, your turtle will probably become more comfortable with its surroundings and might show more affection toward you. You can also try regularly taking your turtle out of its tank and offering treats.
How can I bond with a new turtle?
When you first get a new turtle, focus on consistently caring for it by feeding it on a schedule and keeping its tank clean. You can also try hand feeding them treats, or regularly take them out of the tank and play with them. Move slowly and let the turtle get comfortable with you. In time, it should begin to recognize you and build affection for you.
Final Verdict
The above discussion has clearly revealed that turtles do get attached to their owners and have a very unique way of expressing their love and gratitude.
