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My Turtles
History: I have been raising turtle since 1990, and I've seen a lot of kinds. I mainly let them go when I think the time is right. My dad sometimes finds turtles alongside the road, picks them up, and brings them home. We usually
release them within a year to a safer location, rather then leaving them on the roadside. A few have die on us, some escaped, but we live right next to woods, so those who have escaped have hopefully went there and are living a full life. I explain (from what I can remember) about the turtles we have had down below. They are in chronological order too (or close to it).
Jack |
Type
Aquatic |
Additional Info: Jack was the first turtle we ever decided to keep as a pet. She was very wild and didn't like to be held. We learned a lot about turtles and got a lot of supplies because of Jack. We had to get rid of her because of our second turtle Billy. He kept following her and nipping at her. She nipped back sometimes, but since she was more wild, we decided to let her go.
| Species/Breed
Painted Turtle | Sex
Female | Obtained
Uncle found Her | Date Obtained
Spring 1991 | Date Released
Spring 1992 |
|
Billy |
Type
Aquatic |
Additional Info: I'd have to say that Billy is my favorite turtle. Unlike what some people think, turtles do have personality. We he sees someone he doesn't know enter our house, he swims franticly to the bottom of his tank, and tries covering himself with the stones at the bottom
of the tank. When he sees anyone in my family, he tries to get their attention by swimming up to them and splashing the water. He does respond to me best though. I let him out of his tank and he'll follow me around as long as he wants. He does get bored after awhile, and will explore on his own.
More Info
| Species/Breed
Red-Eared Slider | Sex
Male | Obtained
Pet Store | Date Obtained
Summer 1991 | Date Released
Permanent Resident |
|
Mosey |
Type
Land |
Additional Info: Mosey is the first land turtle we decided to keep. This time we needed another tank to house her. Several times she has laid eggs, but none have ever hatched. She loves raw meatballs, worms, and other such items. She will respond when I call or bend my head down to see her, but she won't follow me or greet me.
More Info
| Species/Breed
Box Turtle | Sex
Female | Obtained
Bought off Person | Date Obtained
Late Summer 1991 | Date Released
Permanent Resident |
|
Mack |
Type
Land |
Additional Info: Mack was the first Male box we got. He was semi friendly.
| Species/Breed
Box Turtle | Sex
Male | Obtained
Pet Store | Date Obtained
Winter 1991 | Date Released
Summer 1992 |
|
| Fred |
Type
Land |
Additional Info: When we got Fred, he was in a tank with cat litter at the bottom. We emptied the litter and replace it with soft dirt. When we put him on the ground, we found out he didn't walk right. He was in a small tank, so he could only take a couple steps (while he was at our house he shared the 30 gallon with the other two box) before running into glass. Apparently the woman was in the mental hospital and there was no one to take care of him, so they gave him to my dad to take care of till she was better. We got Fred back to full health within two months. He walked normal, and for awhile kept eating everything we gave him like there wasn't going to be anymore. When fall came, I guess the woman wanted him back so we gave him back.
| Species/Breed
Box Turtle | Sex
Male | Obtained
Woman gave to us | Date Obtained
Early Spring 1992 | Date Released
Fall 1992 |
|
| Joey |
Type
Aquatic |
Additional Info: Billy tolerated him for awhile, then started nipping. We released him later that week.
| Species/Breed
Painted Turtle | Sex
Male | Obtained
Roadside | Date Obtained
Summer 1992 | Date Released
Summer 1992 |
|
Mikey |
Type
Land |
Additional Info: Mikey was found by my dad along the roadside. When he brought him home, we put him on the floor and watched. It took him 1 hour before he came out of his shell. He was really jumpy and shy. After a few weeks he let us pick him without tucking in. We let him explore the house and one day he found a bathroom mirror we had sitting against the wall and started attacking it. He didn't realize it was his image and thought it was another turtle. To this day he still attacks himself. He also has a jagged edges on his shell, like it was cut into but healed again.
More Info
| Species/Breed
Eastern Box Turtle | Sex
Male | Obtained
Roadside | Date Obtained
Fall 1992 | Date Released
Permanent Resident |
|
Little Joey |
Type
aquatic |
Additional Info: Little Joey was another painted we got beside the roadside. He was a smaller one then we
normally get, and we decide to get a floating plastic device he could sit on. He loved that thing and when we let him go we still kept it. It's still used for any small water turtles we get. This was one of the few water turtles we kept for a longer time, only because we had a separate take for him.
| Species/Breed
Painted Turtle | Sex
Male | Obtained
Roadside | Date Obtained
Summer 1994 | Date Released
June 2, 1996 |
|
| Hulkette |
Type
Aquatic |
Additional Info: Hulkette was the only one so far to match Billy's size. I
believe she might have been a little bigger. We tried putting her in his tank, and as before he left her alone for awhile, and then began to torment her. She fought back though, and I guess this surprised him because he left her alone for at least a week. He tried again and this time she didn't fight back as much. We did have the other tank ready so we put her in it. She liked to take food out of my hand, but only for awhile. She was a bit big for that tank so we let her go during the fall.
| Species/Breed
Painted Turtle | Sex
Female | Obtained
Roadside | Date Obtained
Spring 1995 | Date Released
Fall 1995 |
|
| Lucky |
Type
Land |
Additional Info: My dad picked Lucky up after he saw a truck nick her and fling her to the side of the road (hence the name). He thought she might have been killed, but he checked and brought her home. She was really shy and didn't like anyone. When she got more brave, she walked a lot and when held really tried to get out of your hand. She laid eggs in the fall and we incubated them. Out of that batch we finally got one to hatch. Spike/Little One is her son. But during the next summer, she somehow got out of the pen and escaped into the woods. We have again redesigned the pen better and for a lot smaller turtles. Her son looks a lot like her.
| Species/Breed
Box Turtle | Sex
Female | Obtained
Roadside | Date Obtained
Summer 1995 | Date Released
July 4, 1997 |
|
| Buddy |
Type
Land |
Additional Info: Found along the road, when my dad brought him home he was pretty bold. He walked around without hesitation and sniffed everything. He was a bigger box turtle then the others. Mikey started picking fights with him, but Buddy wouldn't fight back. We kept them
separated, and one day (being that he was strong enough) opened our screen door and headed for the woods.
| Species/Breed
Box Turtle | Sex
Male | Obtained
Roadside | Date Obtained
Spring 1996 | Date Released
Summer 1996 |
|
| Bertha |
Type
Aquatic |
Additional Info: Like Hulkette, she was big. Not as large as Billy though. We did have a
separate tank and put her immediately into, knowing what Billy does.
| Species/Breed
Painted Turtle | Sex
Female | Obtained
Roadside | Date Obtained
Summer 1996 | Date Released
Fall 1996 |
|
Spike/Little One |
Type
Land |
Additional Info: Spike is the first turtle we have ever got to hatch. He looks a lot like his mother. He is very inquisitive, and like his mother can't stand being held. He has an annoying habit of biting anything he can, and he does this to the other boxes feet. He doesn't bite hard
enough to pierce the skin, but they don't like it.
More Info
| Species/Breed
Box Turtle | Sex
Female | Obtained
Hatched | Date Obtained
October 1, 1996 | Date Released
Permanent Resident |
|
| No Name |
Type
Land |
Additional Info: On the way to a computer show in Monroeville, my dad spotted him and quickly pulled over. I was with him and didn't see him. My dad got out and ran over to the side. I couldn't really see the turtle, but I saw my dad bend down and look closer then without another thought brought him over and put it in the van. I looked at the turtle and it was clear it had been hit by a car on his front end. He was still alive and struggling. His head had been hit and his top and bottom shell was cracked. We continued on while I got a box and put paper towels in it. We got some water and washed him off. As soon as we could, we got him to a vet and had him humanly put to sleep. It was 4 days later, but none of us could do it ourselves. He is buried out in our back yard.
| Species/Breed
Box Turtle | Sex
Male | Obtained
Roadside | Date Obtained
Summer 1997 | Date Released
Died: Summer 1997 |
|
Snappers |
Type
Aquatic |
Additional Info: We have a friend that goes along the pond side and saves the eggs from being dug up by an animal. When he hatches them, he gives them to us and we raise them in an isolated tank. A few keep falling to the bottom and get water logged. We help them up and position them so they don't fall again. One was born with no eyes and died a month later. One fell out of the tank and walked around the house for a week without being noticed, was found as healthy as the others. We get them in the fall and release them in the spring. We release them in a swamp that is at least a half hour drive from our house.
More Info
| Species/Breed
Snapping Turtle | Sex
Assorted | Obtained
Friend Hatches Them | Date Obtained
Fall 1998-1999 | Date Released
Spring 1999-2000 |
|
Tiny |
Type
Aquatic |
Additional Info: I can't say much about Tiny yet. We just got him a while ago, and for right now, he lives in a 10 gallon tank with salamanders and a tadpole. Actually, we don't know if it is a he or she yet, but as "it" grows older, we will know.
| Species/Breed
Painted Turtle | Sex
Unknown | Obtained
Found | Date Obtained
April 23, 2000 | Date Released
Permanent Resident |
|
| Stripe |
Type
Aquatic |
Additional Info: We got another baby Painted, although this is a southern breed. It has a
bright red stripe down the middle of it's back. This one lives separate from the other painted, in the tank Runt used to be in. A sad thing happened. This poor turtle drowned. We don't know how, we just saw him sitting on the bottom, investigated and found him lifeless :(.
| Species/Breed
Southern Painted Turtle | Sex
Unknown | Obtained
Traded | Date Obtained
April 29, 2000 | Date Released
Died: June 1, 2000 |
|
10 Gallon Tank |
Type
Aquarium |
Additional Info: This is one of the news tanks we got. We have it for any small or medium turtles we find. We isolate them from our permanent turtles until we can release them again. Right now though, it houses Tiny, salamanders, tadpoles, and some water plants. It has one small filter on it.
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30 Gallon Tank |
Type
Aquarium |
Additional Info: This is one of the longest tanks we've had. It used to be for Billy, but we got him a bigger one. This one currently houses Stripe. It has one big filter on it, a variety of fish, 5 snails, and underwater plants.
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40 Gallon Tank |
Type
Terrerium |
Additional Info: This is the newest one we bought. It used to house a crocodile (small one) but it died and the guy that had it sold it to us. It has a wooden frame on the top, with a hinge to open more then half of the top, and two slide locks to keep the cage shut. We don't need the locks, nor the whole top on really, but it's nice and we're not going to mess with it. This tank currently houses the box turtles: Mosey, Mikey, and Spike. During fall and winter, we fill it with leaves, spring and summer, we'll put dirt and grow grass in it.
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55 Gallon Tank |
Type
Aquarium |
Additional Info: This is a monster tank, especially for just one turtle. This is Billy's tank. It is run by 3 filters. It has a Large one, a small one, and an organic one. We don't really think the organic one works, but it makes a nice waterfall. Billy's Tank has 2 Window Catfish, snails, and plant life. He also has rocks and other decorative stuff at the bottom of his tank. He has an underground filter and a pump to help keep it clean. He has a bubble maker (actually 2, just one hose) and we've tried putting those toy things that go up and down, but he always seems to mess them up. Billy is really happy in this tank. It has a stand that came with it, a nice wooden one, and a light that came with it to fit the huge length.
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here since November 10, 1999.
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