Saving Turtles

[faislaq]

I have helped a large snapping turtle cross the road once. Though it was so aggressive and so large, all I could do in the end was push him end over end into the pond with my boot... but he swam away no worse for wear.

Still beats the alternative.

 

[Sylvester]

I have helped a large snapping turtle cross the road once. Though it was so aggressive and so large, all I could do in the end was push him end over end into the pond with my boot... but he swam away no worse for wear.

Thank you for helping him. Most people won't give those guys the time of day.

I once took a large snapping turtle over to the other side. I carried him by his tail and my friend got mad at me and said that was cruel. I said a sore tail was better than a smashed shell.

 

[Sarahmoluccan]

Urg!! More sad news for turtles
Virus that has contributed to 'mass mortality' in reptiles confirmed in Canadian turtle for 1st time | CBC News
So sad I think it might be good to get more familiar with our local wildlife rehab center just in case you come across a sick turtle. Sadly there's no cure yet, but atleast it won't spread as fast, hopefully anyway. Looks like our little friends need all the help they can get.

@Sylvester I'm glad you helped that turtle, but you do have to be extra careful with their tails. Because their tails are connected to their spines you can unintentionally cause serious damage to their spines. Just a little FYI I learned that when volunteering for a not-for-profit environmental organization.

I couldn't remember how exactly to move a snapper so I googled it and came across this good little vidoe

 

[Shezbug]

We only see little turtles when it rains so much that everything floods. All our gutters in town run into a water hole that is used to water the nature strips and common green areas in town, when it rains a lot the turtles all end up wondering up the gutters and trying to cross the roads. Most people here do put them back into the reserve/water hole but a few do end up squashed unfortunately.

Most around here will purposely run over brown snakes and some of the other snakes, it really bothers me. I will never understand the mind set one must have to deliberately aim for and run over any living creature, it is an awfully evil thing to do.

 

[TikiMyn]

So sad that Some people run them over on purpose, but it doesn’t suprise me You are all so lucky to have turtles around though! The only turtles here are released pets. In most areas they die, but in a few places they thrive

 

[Sylvester]

Urg!! More sad news for turtles
Virus that has contributed to 'mass mortality' in reptiles confirmed in Canadian turtle for 1st time | CBC News
So sad I think it might be good to get more familiar with our local wildlife rehab center just in case you come across a sick turtle. Sadly there's no cure yet, but atleast it won't spread as fast, hopefully anyway. Looks like our little friends need all the help they can get.

@Sylvester I'm glad you helped that turtle, but you do have to be extra careful with their tails. Because their tails are connected to their spines you can unintentionally cause serious damage to their spines. Just a little FYI I learned that when volunteering for a not-for-profit environmental organization.

I couldn't remember how exactly to move a snapper so I googled it and came across this good little vidoe

As if turtles don't have enough problems. I have never run across a sick turtle only an injured one. I will keep a look out.Thank you for that information and that helpful video. I had no idea about their tails and I am grateful you told me.

 

[Sylvester]

So sad that Some people run them over on purpose, but it doesn’t suprise me You are all so lucky to have turtles around though! The only turtles here are released pets. In most areas they die, but in a few places they thrive

They can survive if they find water and food. I honestly wish they would stop selling them as pets because most people have no idea what they are doing when it comes to raising a turtle.

 

[Sylvester]

We only see little turtles when it rains so much that everything floods. All our gutters in town run into a water hole that is used to water the nature strips and common green areas in town, when it rains a lot the turtles all end up wondering up the gutters and trying to cross the roads. Most people here do put them back into the reserve/water hole but a few do end up squashed unfortunately.

Most around here will purposely run over brown snakes and some of the other snakes, it really bothers me. I will never understand the mind set one must have to deliberately aim for and run over any living creature, it is an awfully evil thing to do.

And they have no idea, or don't care, about how much pain they have inflicted upon those animals. I have no patience when it comes to that mentality.

 

[TikiMyn]

They can survive if they find water and food. I honestly wish they would stop selling them as pets because most people have no idea what they are doing when it comes to raising a turtle.

Yeah, it is so sad. When I am in a pet shop where they sell turtles there are always people drooling by their tanks. They don’t even know those Tiny 3-5cm turtles Will grow! They think they Will stay that small forever. Admitted, I thought that too when I was a child!

 

[Sylvester]

Yeah, it is so sad. When I am in a pet shop where they sell turtles there are always people drooling by their tanks. They don’t even know those Tiny 3-5cm turtles Will grow! They think they Will stay that small forever. Admitted, I thought that too when I was a child![/QUOT

I did too! Years later I had a roommate who had a large tank full of turtles, and it struck me that those were the same kind of turtles that I bought when I was a kid. Only his turtles were huge because they had enough room to be able to grow.

 

[TikiMyn]

The small turtles were really cute right? The big ones too of course There is a reptile sanctuary close to me, they have a bunch of pets people unknowingly bought who grew to be very big. My dad also has a turtle(Leonardo), my grandpa got him from someone who told him to dump him in a river because their kids didn’t like him anymore. He is actually a water turtle(Turtoise? In the Netherlands we call them all turtles) but had only ONE centimeter of water in his small, bare tank. His whole Shell was dried out. Poor baby, he has grown twice his original size since coming to us though

 

[Teckechick]

Ugh we live by a marsh land area and of course there is a road going right by it. It is a major highway that runs right along next to the marsh land and there are a ton of poor turtles that get killed trying to reach the marsh. Tons of people stop to try to help but there are hundreds crossing. Some people also just don't care we had someone yell at us for holding up traffic in one of the turn lanes when we stopped to help a few across the road, he got the one finger solute. It is very very sad the next day to see all the ones that didn't make it across.

 

[Sylvester]

Ugh we live by a marsh land area and of course there is a road going right by it. It is a major highway that runs right along next to the marsh land and there are a ton of poor turtles that get killed trying to reach the marsh. Tons of people stop to try to help but there are hundreds crossing. Some people also just don't care we had someone yell at us for holding up traffic in one of the turn lanes when we stopped to help a few across the road, he got the one finger solute. It is very very sad the next day to see all the ones that didn't make it across.

Thank you for saving these helpless creatures! And I love the salute you gave to 'impatient one'.

I hear you, for I have almost gotten hit myself trying to get them off the road.

Three years ago I came close to buying the farm when rescuing a black lab puppy who was running back and forth across highway 55. The cars just kept barreling down and those idiots weren't about to stop for the puppy, or ME! You all would have been hearing about my fate on the national news.

 

[Sylvester]

The small turtles were really cute right? The big ones too of course There is a reptile sanctuary close to me, they have a bunch of pets people unknowingly bought who grew to be very big. My dad also has a turtle(Leonardo), my grandpa got him from someone who told him to dump him in a river because their kids didn’t like him anymore. He is actually a water turtle(Turtoise? In the Netherlands we call them all turtles) but had only ONE centimeter of water in his small, bare tank. His whole Shell was dried out. Poor baby, he has grown twice his original size since coming to us though

Oh wow, it sounds like you come from a whole family of animal lovers. Kudos to you, your parents and grandparents for the love you all have shown towards our reptile friends.

"Leonardo", I like that. Now he's not artistic, is he?

Children getting bored with their pets is indeed a tragedy. I am glad you got to him in time.

 

[BirdManDan]

Just this past Saturday we saved a box turtle crossing the road in Georgia.

 

[faislaq]

Hmmm... I was just thinking. If there was an area nearby where there were frequent turtle crossings, would it be a good idea to keep a snow shovel in the trunk? No bites, no walking bow-legged to avoid getting peed on. It sounds like a good idea in theory, but I've never used a snow shovel & have only rescued small to medium sized turtles so I'm not sure if that would work. Would a scoop shovel for horse stalls work any better? Sure it would take up trunk space, but if you lived in an area like @Teckechick it might be worth it, plus you'd only need it in your car for a few months I think.

 

[Teckechick]

@faislaq that is a great idea, if the shovel was big enough and the turtles small enough you could possible load a few on one shovel to get them across quicker. A box or tote would do the trick also.

 

[faislaq]

@faislaq that is a great idea, if the shovel was big enough and the turtles small enough you could possible load a few on one shovel to get them across quicker. A box or tote would do the trick also.

A few?? I've never seen more than one at a time. Maybe one here and another there on down the road, but not en masse!

It would help keep your steering wheel clean, too.

 

[Teckechick]

A few?? I've never seen more than one at a time. Maybe one here and another there on down the road, but not en masse!

It would help keep your steering wheel clean, too.

We get hundreds on that road at a time the marsh here is huge around 7ish square miles. It is horrible how many get run over, the road is for lack of a better term a turtle mine field.

 

[Sylvester]

Just this past Saturday we saved a box turtle crossing the road in Georgia.

Thank you so much, BirdManDan!! It sounds like you are also a big softie when it comes to animals.