Just saved a turtle/toroise from some obnoxious kids, need help with ID and care info

[Superconductor]

Hi all, I was referred here when I posted this on another forum. This happened earlier today. This is the OP I posted:

Okay, uh....so this just happened.

Was coming in from walking my dogs and saw some kids kicking what looked like a rock around the parking lot. Also trying to jump over it on their skateboards. As I got closer I realized that it was in fact not a rock, but a turtle. I flipped at them, asked them what they thought they were doing, etc.

Kid #1 said the turtle belonged to Kid #2. Kid #2 said yeah, it was his. I asked where their parents were, they said "not home." (Right ) and when I asked them what they thought they were doing, they shrugged.

I couldn't get any real information from them, and this entire time they KEEP giggling and poking the turtle around the sidewalk and tapping its shell with their feet and zooming their skateboards into it. I asked them where they lived, since I was going to get their parents involved, and they just said "I DUNNO" and refused to tell me. Great. As a last resort, I asked if I could have it. They said "NOPE" so I asked if they'd sell it to me. They were immediately like "OKAY" and I gave them a little cash and took it.

I have no idea about turtles. At all. I had a few snakes and lizards in high school, but never turtles. I THINK it's a box turtle, but am not even confidant about THAT, because I know literally nothing about turtles.

What the heck do I do with this thing? It looks healthy enough aside from being a little scuffed up, and it keeps trying to get out of the box I have it in and it doesn't hesitate to hiss at me when I pick it up. Then again, I don't know how to tell if a turtle is healthy so I have no clue.

I'd honestly be willing to keep it if I can get a crash course in Box Turtle care, but I've always been told they have difficult care requirements and I know they suffer a lot in the pet trade and if their care is too difficult for a newb, I'll gladly find a reptile rescue around here to take it. They're native here, but if it was bought from a pet store (they said it was) or something, would that make it unreleasable? Ohgod I don't know anything about turtles.

So guys- this is a box turtle, right? I'm about to start googling their care and try to get it some proper food and a box with a UV bulb and some substrate tonight until I can get a proper setup for it, or...should I just not bother and find a rescue for it instead? All I know about box turtles is that they're terrestrial. That's it.

Helpppp

Someone there thought it might be a red footed tortoise, so they referred me here. Any help/advice would be greatly appreciated!

 

[chadk]

Box turtle.

http://www.aboxturtle.com/

 

[Superconductor]

Box turtle.

http://www.aboxturtle.com/

Thaaaaaaaaaaat's what I thought. Thanks for the link.

 

[chadk]

My boxies thrive in an outdoor pen with plenty of fresh water, shade, some sunshine, and lots of tasty slugs, snails, and worms

Depending on the exact type of boxie you have and how close your climate matches their natural climate (some wiggle room), you could build a simple outdoor pen.

 

[Superconductor]

My boxies thrive in an outdoor pen with plenty of fresh water, shade, some sunshine, and lots of tasty slugs, snails, and worms

Depending on the exact type of boxie you have and how close your climate matches their natural climate (some wiggle room), you could build a simple outdoor pen.

Unfortunately, I'm in an apartment so have no yard to speak of. Are indoor setups possible with box turtles, or is it too difficult to provide the humidity and temps the need indoors?

 

[TortieLuver]

Welcome to the forum! Good thing you were around when this happened, as it could have turned out a lot worse.

 

[Yvonne G]

Hi Superconductor:

Welcome to the forum!!

It just breaks my heart that those kids were treating that poor little box turtle like that. Box turtles are one of the most friendly of chelonians. I absolutely hate this story!! Thank you, thank you, thank you for taking in this poor turtle and getting him away from those kids.

 

[Tom]

Where do you live? Its not too late to tan some hides. What those kids were doing is literally CRIMINAL and they should be punished for it. Further, their parents should be paying fines and legal processing fees.

You are to be commended for getting involved and saving this poor turtle. Thank you.

 

[moswen]

Welcome! What a wonderful thing you did, that poor turtle! And you did him one better, you're actually researching what he needs! That's awesome, I applaud you. Where do you live? As in, state? I live in OK and my sister in law keeps box turtles, since you don't have outdoor access you need to provide him with a corner full of decomposing oak leaves and wood, lots of moisture rich dirt. If you don't want to dig that up, I guess you could use mulch from a hardware store but I'm not 100% sure that's okay so get someone else's advice about that, but that should keep the humidity up, mist or spray it every day to keep it moist. Boxies are most active in the early morning and evening hours so expect him to stay buried during the day. They eat worms, snails, and other things, you can try to feed him minnows but some like them and some don't. Give him fresh water every day in a shallow pan, he can't swim! There are lots of great people on here that keep these guys so you're in good hands!

 

[mightyclyde]

Ornate box turtle imo. Those kids are pigs. Where do you live? Also, you should have no trouble if you choose to adopt him out.

 

[egyptiandan]

You are the proud owner of an Eastern box turtle, Terrapene carolina carolina.

Danny

 

[Weloveourtortoise]

Thank you for saving the poor little guy!

 

[Kristina]

I would literally beat the SNOT out of my children if they ever THOUGHT of doing something so disgusting... which they would NEVER do.

Thanks for saving this guy. You are commended for that.

 

[Maggie Cummings]

While moswen is correct about the mulch and leaves that's not what you need inside. Take a book case and lay it down and take out the shelves. Staple a shower curtain liner all around and fill it with cypress mulch that you can get online or top soil from one of the big box stores. Now you have a set up. Easy huh! Then you need a UVB light some hides and some food. worms slugs and night crawlers are favorites, so are berries and cantaloupe. Here's a care sheet and hang out here for a while and we'll help you with him. Depending on where you live you might could release him in a nice spot and give him a chance at a good life in the wilds...thanks for taking him in. I would certainly get the parents involved in what is obvious animal abuse...

http://aboxturtle.com/

 

[goodsmeagol]

Damn....
What a beautiful turtle tho!
Not only are you and outstanding person, but also LUCKY as hell!
Good luck.

 

[Superconductor]

Thanks everyone! If I see those kids again I'll try to watch and see what apartment they go into so I can notify someone. I'm pretty certain they live in my building, but my building has over 300 units and I moved in just over a week ago so I don't really know anyone yet and I'm not positive. If I can though, I'll get the parents/authorities involved. I can't believe this guy doesn't have more serious injuries, they were stomping and kicking him pretty badly. He's got a few scuffs on the bottom of his shell, but other than that is very bright eyed and active and took a few nightcrawlers I picked up for him last night.

I live in west central GA, right on the river, so I'm definitely in his native range, but the kids swore he was a pet store buy.

While moswen is correct about the mulch and leaves that's not what you need inside. Take a book case and lay it down and take out the shelves. Staple a shower curtain liner all around and fill it with cypress mulch that you can get online or top soil from one of the big box stores. Now you have a set up. Easy huh! Then you need a UVB light some hides and some food. worms slugs and night crawlers are favorites, so are berries and cantaloupe. Here's a care sheet and hang out here for a while and we'll help you with him. Depending on where you live you might could release him in a nice spot and give him a chance at a good life in the wilds...thanks for taking him in. I would certainly get the parents involved in what is obvious animal abuse...

Thanks, that actually works out well because I do have a spare book case! Because I literally JUST moved, money is going to be very tight for the next two weeks (honestly, this came at an awful time financially) so while I can splurge on a really awesome setup for him in a few weeks, I need to just get the basics right now. I'm going out to get a UVB bulb/hood, some substrate, a liner for the book case, a water bowl big enough for him to soak in, and I guess some more nightcrawlers and mealworms/waxworms, and then a few of the fruits and veggies off of the list in the caresheet that was linked. I'll rig up some hides for him out of stuff around the house, and make sure he gets misted daily- should all that be enough to see him through the next 10 days or so?

As far as feeding goes, should I just give him constant access to a variety of fruits/veggies and then toss in some sort of animal protein once a day or so?

 

[Kristina]

Actually, the care you just listed would pretty much get him through the next ten years, lol. The biggest expense is the UV bulbs. The rest of it is negligible, especially if you can be a bit clever, like with finidng things around the house to make hides from. I also find hollow logs and things outside to use, and scrape up leaves from the nature preserve behind my house to use on top of the mulch. A saucer from a flower pot that is glazed works great as a water dish, usually less than $2 and is about $10 cheaper than a reptile bowl.

Go to Walmart and get a clamp lamp fixture, that will work to hold your UV bulb, you just have to make sure the bulb face is parallel to the substrate. I made a lamp stand out of a 2" X 4" and a ceiling hook for $3. You don't NEED a $20 fixture or a $20 stand.

For heat, you can use another clamp light fixture, and a regular 100 watt bulb that you can get 4/$1 at about any store. You don't need to spend $10 on a "reptile" heat bulb. At night, as long as your house stays above 60, just turn the lamps off. Boxies, being native, don't need night time supplemental heat.

You don't need to splurge. A good sized book case would last the rest of his life. Shower curtain liners are only a few dollars. I you have a balcony or small yard that gets some sun, you could put him outside in a kiddy pool for a few hours each day, and you wouldn't even NEED a UV light, at least during the summer months. A kiddy pool costs about $7, and bags of cypress mulch at Home Depot are less than $3.

Check out this sunning enclosure that Tom built - http://tortoiseforum.org/thread-14680.html

Breaking the bank isn't necessary to take good care of these kids. I built my outdoor Russian tortoise pen for $10. I just found as many recycled materials as I could.