aqualover9
Sprinting down the street
Very long and sad post ahead... not exactly sure why I felt the need to post this but here I am anyway. I originally wrote this on a Youtube comment FYI.
I'm currently in the process of persuading my parents (and my grandparents for that matter) for a Winter White. I feel like I've been lost for the past year because so many things were changing and I've been researching pets ever since. I wanted a bird because we don't have enough space for a dog, cat, ferret, chinchilla, etc, etc. What about rodents? Well, my grandma is deathly afraid of them. (Later to be proved wrong, she's not afraid of hamsters.) So that's why I thought a bird would be the best fit. I was so wrong lol. They require the same space, if not more, then the animals I just listed. Some forum members helped me come to the realization that I also didn't have enough time for one. I only have 2 hours of free time a day and that's gonna be cut short when I go to high school. I will also be attending college in 6 years and birds live much longer than that. I'm afraid I will have to rehome the bird because none of my family members were willing to take care of it.
It was at this time (the middle of June) when I decided that I needed to upgrade my turtle's tank. We got the turtle from a pond and had done no research beforehand. Little did I know that Misty would grow up to 10+ inches in diameter. I had Misty for a year already and I started researching turtles in my free time. I found that you need 10 gallons of water per inch of a turtle's shell and they lived up to 50 years. I felt so bad for keeping her in a 10-gallon tank, yes a tiny 10 gallon for an entire year without a UVB light and her shell started pyramiding. Also, I didn't think it was necessary to feed a turtle fruits and veggies. At this point, Misty was so used to being feed commercial food that she refused to eat anything else. I did get her to eat some pieces of strawberry after dipping them in her favorite shrimp treat. However, this was not enough at all. This was too much for me once I knew the truth. I went on a spree on Amazon and bought a 50-gallon stock tank (I had no space in my house for a 100 gallon and we were shopping for a new house so I thought I could bear with a 50 gallon; also I couldn't afford a glass aquarium) as well as new heat lamps and UVB bulbs, and a new filtration system----- without telling my parents. (I knew the would never allow such a "big" tank in their house and I was using my money anyway. The entire purchase was also over $250) I told my sister though and she told my parents so they knew anyway. They told me to return ALL of it. I refused. When all the stuff arrived I was so happy! My mom had finally given in and said that if I kept Misty in the backyard, it'll be fine. (I could hibernate Misty in the winter) YESSSSSSS! But wait, here's when things went downhill. Just as I was filling up the 50 gallon, I brought Misty outside to enjoy the sun. I had done this in the past and after a "turtle leash" (I know what you're thinking of me; wth was I even doing???) proved to be useless, I just decided not to use it. Also, every time she "got lost" I was always able to find her under a bush or something. I really really hate myself. I finished filling up the tank and turned back around. Misty was not there. Shoot. Now I had to look for her again. But I kept looking and looking and looking and soon it became clear that she was probably buried in the dirt. I brought out other family members to help me look and no one found her. I was getting worried now. I searched up how to find a missing turtle and bought some tuna and set it outside. It was getting dark and there was still no sign of Misty. I didn't want to attract cats because they might spot Misty and kill her so I took away the tuna. Now I was really worried. I decided to sleep on it and wait for the next morning where there would be sun and maybe she would come out to bask. She didn't. I dug a hole for a little tub of water hoping that maybe she would stumble around and find herself in some water and wouldn't get too dehydrated. We had a BBQ in the afternoon and there were too many mosquitos so my dad sprayed bug repellant everywhere. I was sure that Misty was dead by now. An aquatic turtle can only survive 2-3 days without water and the bug spray was just too much. For the next week, I was hysterical. I kept telling myself I could've done more. I could have stayed up at night. I could've asked the neighbor's dog to sniff her out. I could've posted "lost turtle" signs. Etc, etc. I say goodnight to her soul every day. I tell her I am so sorry and that I hope she's in a better place. I tell her I love her. I could've done so much better but I just didn't. I'm afraid that one day when I'm digging around in the backyard, I'll just find an empty shell.
So please, please, pleaseeeeee do your research before you get a pet. Do not ever make the same mistakes I made. Do not ever put an animal through the pain I did. Hope you learned something. I love you Misty. <3
Here's the link to the Youtube video and I edited some parts out cuz it wouldn't make sense without the video:
EDIT: Please do not kick me off the forum. I know. I suck. Like a lot.
EDIT #2: Winter White refers to a type of hamster.
I'm currently in the process of persuading my parents (and my grandparents for that matter) for a Winter White. I feel like I've been lost for the past year because so many things were changing and I've been researching pets ever since. I wanted a bird because we don't have enough space for a dog, cat, ferret, chinchilla, etc, etc. What about rodents? Well, my grandma is deathly afraid of them. (Later to be proved wrong, she's not afraid of hamsters.) So that's why I thought a bird would be the best fit. I was so wrong lol. They require the same space, if not more, then the animals I just listed. Some forum members helped me come to the realization that I also didn't have enough time for one. I only have 2 hours of free time a day and that's gonna be cut short when I go to high school. I will also be attending college in 6 years and birds live much longer than that. I'm afraid I will have to rehome the bird because none of my family members were willing to take care of it.
It was at this time (the middle of June) when I decided that I needed to upgrade my turtle's tank. We got the turtle from a pond and had done no research beforehand. Little did I know that Misty would grow up to 10+ inches in diameter. I had Misty for a year already and I started researching turtles in my free time. I found that you need 10 gallons of water per inch of a turtle's shell and they lived up to 50 years. I felt so bad for keeping her in a 10-gallon tank, yes a tiny 10 gallon for an entire year without a UVB light and her shell started pyramiding. Also, I didn't think it was necessary to feed a turtle fruits and veggies. At this point, Misty was so used to being feed commercial food that she refused to eat anything else. I did get her to eat some pieces of strawberry after dipping them in her favorite shrimp treat. However, this was not enough at all. This was too much for me once I knew the truth. I went on a spree on Amazon and bought a 50-gallon stock tank (I had no space in my house for a 100 gallon and we were shopping for a new house so I thought I could bear with a 50 gallon; also I couldn't afford a glass aquarium) as well as new heat lamps and UVB bulbs, and a new filtration system----- without telling my parents. (I knew the would never allow such a "big" tank in their house and I was using my money anyway. The entire purchase was also over $250) I told my sister though and she told my parents so they knew anyway. They told me to return ALL of it. I refused. When all the stuff arrived I was so happy! My mom had finally given in and said that if I kept Misty in the backyard, it'll be fine. (I could hibernate Misty in the winter) YESSSSSSS! But wait, here's when things went downhill. Just as I was filling up the 50 gallon, I brought Misty outside to enjoy the sun. I had done this in the past and after a "turtle leash" (I know what you're thinking of me; wth was I even doing???) proved to be useless, I just decided not to use it. Also, every time she "got lost" I was always able to find her under a bush or something. I really really hate myself. I finished filling up the tank and turned back around. Misty was not there. Shoot. Now I had to look for her again. But I kept looking and looking and looking and soon it became clear that she was probably buried in the dirt. I brought out other family members to help me look and no one found her. I was getting worried now. I searched up how to find a missing turtle and bought some tuna and set it outside. It was getting dark and there was still no sign of Misty. I didn't want to attract cats because they might spot Misty and kill her so I took away the tuna. Now I was really worried. I decided to sleep on it and wait for the next morning where there would be sun and maybe she would come out to bask. She didn't. I dug a hole for a little tub of water hoping that maybe she would stumble around and find herself in some water and wouldn't get too dehydrated. We had a BBQ in the afternoon and there were too many mosquitos so my dad sprayed bug repellant everywhere. I was sure that Misty was dead by now. An aquatic turtle can only survive 2-3 days without water and the bug spray was just too much. For the next week, I was hysterical. I kept telling myself I could've done more. I could have stayed up at night. I could've asked the neighbor's dog to sniff her out. I could've posted "lost turtle" signs. Etc, etc. I say goodnight to her soul every day. I tell her I am so sorry and that I hope she's in a better place. I tell her I love her. I could've done so much better but I just didn't. I'm afraid that one day when I'm digging around in the backyard, I'll just find an empty shell.
So please, please, pleaseeeeee do your research before you get a pet. Do not ever make the same mistakes I made. Do not ever put an animal through the pain I did. Hope you learned something. I love you Misty. <3
Here's the link to the Youtube video and I edited some parts out cuz it wouldn't make sense without the video:
EDIT: Please do not kick me off the forum. I know. I suck. Like a lot.
EDIT #2: Winter White refers to a type of hamster.
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. Although you made a mistake it wasn’t deliberate and everyone makes them. 
