Before buying a turtle or any other pet animal a person should ask himself a few important questions:

• Do I really want to buy it ?
• Will my health condition let me keep the kind of pet I want ?
• Is it legal to keep it where I live ?
• Can I commit myself truly to keeping my pet for life ?
• Will my folks at home accept my new pet ?
• Do I have enough money to built it a " nice home " ?
• Do I have enough money to feed it ?
• Do I have enough money to take it to a doctor when sick ?
• Do I have enough time to take care of it ?
• Can I take care of my pet when going on vacation ?
• Have I read enough about my future pet to handle it properly ?
• Am I ready to take the responsibility of finding my pet a new home in case I can not take care of it anymore ?
• And once again: do I really want to buy it ?

Having answered " YES " to all of the above questions, I guess there is nothing wrong with spending your money and getting the pet of your dreams right away !

But before that ,
the first step would be to buy all the necessary things needed to set up the turtles home, like tank, filter, heater, light and basking light, and get the enclosure all ready for the newcomer.
It would be also wise to buy some turtle food.

When buying a turtle, one should go to an authorized dealer dealing with captive bred and raised animals, acquired from an authorized breeder, or directly from the breeder.

Unless rescued, wild cought turtles should not be kept at home.
Buying wild cought turtles from pet stores makes their populations disappear from their natural habitats and brings them toward extinction.

The chosen turtle should be in overall good condition, with healthy shell and skin - no shell rot or fangus. The turtles eyes should be clear and the reaction when piced up instant (depands on the species - trying to bite, get away or withdraw into the shell).

After having made the purchase, the turtle should be transported and put into its new home as quickly as possible.
The temperature should be set properly and after two or three days of getting used to its new environment and possibly refusing eating, the turtle should start its regular turtle life very soon.