Look who has stopped by!

jeff kushner said:

This gal was laying in the ground cover at the edge of the woods yesterday. She's HUGE and has a near perfect shell!
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It was only 55F yesterday and I checked her shell temp and it was 66F. 11 degrees warmer than ambient temps. Hmmm

Anyway, I soaked her real good cause she looked a bit dry. I have her in a separate box below and to the side of Matt's indoor home. I think they are aware of each other. I am trying to assemble that stack of wood under the blue tarp into an outdoor enclosure but have to admit, I've been making excuses not to....guess I'd better have at it. LOL

I've been searching for a female for Matt...don't judge me. I don't want to force them together. I tried that with a "probably too young" female a while back and it was obviously a mistake so I took her back to where i found her and let her go. She's probably still running!

This gal is easily twice as big as Matt so she won't be bullied. Gorgeous though!

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Fluffy said:

She is a beautiful turtle. I hate to be a downer here but doing this is a terrible idea. Introducing wild and captive turtles is very dangerous to both turtles. Both can introduce diseases and parasites to the other. Also placing a wild Box Turtle in confined spaces with another turtle can cause stress which can weaken the immune system making them even more susceptible to diseases. Then to release them into the wild again can introduce parasites and diseases into a wild population that is already declining. She is probably already carrying eggs and will be looking for a spot to lay them in a month or so. I know it seems like a harmless thing to do but it is far from fun and harmless to the turtles.

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wellington said:

Totally agree. Wild is not ever to be made captive, even for a short time.

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TammyJ said:

This is such a difficult topic.
For myself, I have been unable ever to leave a wild animal that is found in obvious pain and danger, illegal be damned.
But in cases like this turtle sex trafficking one (sorry Jeff!) I will have to come out on the side of the nay sayers, as apparently there's no trauma or danger to the animal involved.

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jeff kushner said:

Mama turtle left us this morning. She was placed in the same location she was found, with a story to tell her turtle friends. Matt met and spent 2-3 hours with Mama yesterday and she was quite clear of what she was going to allow and apparently she was not impressed with Matt. She sealed up tighter than a drum while he climbed all over & under her but she was nonplussed. It was funny to watch while I finished his new house. She was just fine and I removed him last night so she could have some peace before she left today. She finally came out around noon and i put her out in the woods then. She hung around for a couple of hours before we noticed her gone. What a gorgeous turtle!

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