Box turtle buried himself! HELP!

[BigBossLady]

Our newest family member, Mercury the Turtle, buried himself a week after we found him in our yard. (We live in Texas and he came into the lawn on 10/24). He wouldn't eat, but soaked in the water pool we have in his enclosure, and now he's buried himself. He startled a tiny bit when I misted in there, but he didn't come out. Is he hibernating and if so, what do we do?

 

[wellington]

Hello and Welcome. I will have to leave this for the boxie people.

 

[Moozillion]

I know many turtles bury themselves when they feel insecure, but I don't know anything about box turtles or about hibernation. I'm sure some boxie people will chime in soon! Regardless, it's NOT an emergency that requires immediate attention. Hang tight- help will be forthcoming!

 

[Yvonne G]

Hi, and welcome to the Forum!

Is this a baby turtle or an adult?

Do you have him set up with lights? feeder? hiding place? water?

What kind of substrate are you using?

Is it against the law in Texas to pick up a wild turtle?

Is this someone's escaped pet?

Have you tried to find his previous owners?

Answers to these questions will help us to give you better answers.

 

[BigBossLady]

Hi, and welcome to the Forum!

Is this a baby turtle or an adult?

Do you have him set up with lights? feeder? hiding place? water?

What kind of substrate are you using?

Is it against the law in Texas to pick up a wild turtle?

Is this someone's escaped pet?

Have you tried to find his previous owners?

Answers to these questions will help us to give you better answers.

We checked the laws, found stuff about bog turtles but not painted ones (it said it's only unlawful if used for commercial purposes, and then it depends on the turtle). Doubtful it is an escaped pet due to our location outside of town. We have him/her in a rubbermaid tote with a soaking pool in one end and the floor of the tote is lined (or covered) with a mix of potting soil, sand, some wood chips (twigs and chips and whatnot) some stones and some bigger rocks. We have a lamp for heat and expose the tote to direct sunlight.

 

[Saleama]

It is against the law for you to pick up certain ones here in Texas but there is nothing about what you can and can't do should one wander into your yard. My cousin found one walking down her street in McKinney. Is she allowed to capture it on a street in the middle of the city? Probably so. At any rate, no way to tell without knowing what kind of turtle it is. Box turtles will ALWAYS find a good place to dig in. Your job is to make sure there is a deep enough substrate layer for him to feel safe. About 2 inches deeper than the turtle is tall if indoors should be good. Once he or she becomes comfortable with you, then an awesome personality should burst forth. Offer live foods like worms and super worms. Dig him up, show him the worm and them place it in front of him and walk away. Before you know it he will come out of hiding and greet you at the side of the enclosure. Gt rid of the sand and get some leaf litter and small plants from the indoor section at home depot (they have the best and cheapest ones) put a good heat lamp for basking and a UVB for "sunlight" and enjoy him! And get him outside as often as you can. Boxies will happily frolick in the sun and shade in temps as low as mid fifties to mid eighties. Any lower or higher they need a place to dig in out of the cold or to hide from the heat.

 

[Pokeymeg]

Do you plan to return this turtle to the wild? If you just found him wandering through your yard, he is probably best left to his own devices instead of being kept as a pet. Unless he appears sick or injured, of course!

 

[DixieParadise]

I have to agree with Pokey on this one. My mother has threetoes in her yard and it is hard for me to explain to her to leave them alone when I have Easterns that are captive bred. Are you sure this is a box turtle and not a mud turtle? Where are you located? I am also in Texas

 

[BigBossLady]

We called the nearest vet, and the gal was very nice. She took us to the appropriate location and we released the little dude.

 

[Sam_lip]

I have a Russian tortoise and he loves to bury himself in his substrate right under his lamp. He loves to fall asleep like that. I would not worry too much about it.