My tortoise scared me

[laurun3]

Hey guys,

This is kind of a lame story I know...but it amused me so whatever lol So today I decided to feed my 2 torts superworms. Also you should probably know two things: 1. Superworms give me the heebie jeebies because they squirm like crazy and cling to my fingers 2. My torts have a fascination with my fingers, aka they like to try to bite them. Anyways, so I was hand feeding turbo a worm and I wasn't paying attention to torque. And all the sudden I feel this hard pinch and I screamed and picked up my hand and torque was dangling from the skin on my hand! I pretty much never scream at anything but it caught me so off guard. I also ended up dropping the worm in the process and now its roaming around the enclosure because I couldn't find it. So that's kind of disgusting lol Hopefully I didn't drop it out of the enclosure entirely, that would be really gross. But yeah, just thought I'd share lol

-Lauren

 

[Yvonne G]

I think something similar has happened to quite a few of us, Laurun! My box turtles are always going after my toes and it never ceases to cause me to jump and jerk my foot away...even though I KNOW its only a box turtle. Who knows, maybe one day it might be a dreaded monster of some sort!!

Yvonne

 

[shelber10]

ha ha thats pretty funny some thing similar happend to me about a month ago

 

[Maggie Cummings]

I got tired of that happening to me so I use tweezers now...works out good that way...

 

[Chewbecca]

I got tired of that happening to me so I use tweezers now...works out good that way...

I was JUST going to say to try and use tweezers.
Super worms are a STAPLE in my leopard geckos' diet.
I NEVER pick those things up with my bare hands.
I use giant tweezers.

My leos either eat them straight off the tweezers, or I drop them in their enclosure.

I also have giant worm proof bowls that I put them.
I don't know if they'd be too high for a tortoise, though.
Well, not too high, necessarily, but if they put their weight on them, they'd dump over.

 

[Seiryu]

Oh c'mon guys, superworms are not that bad! Are you afraid of them biting you?

My basilisk love them and eat from my hands too. And let me tell you, if they get a hold of your hands or fingers, 1. they ar'nt letting go very easily and 2. be ready with lots and lots of bleeding. Tiny tiny razor sharp teeth. I bled for 20minutes once on my thumb feeding them.

 

[laurun3]

Those are wise words maggie3fan and Chewbecca lol

I might have to invest in some tweezers. I'm not scared of my torts biting me, I just didn't see it coming at all. But she really hung on to that chuck of skin! lol I was impressed.

And I don't mind picking the superworms up, i just don't like it when they start wriggling all over and then cling to my fingers. I've handled them quite a bit, but I still think they're gross.

And Seiryu, that sounds like it sucked lol

 

[Maggie Cummings]

I feed superworms to my box turtles a lot so I know they can't hurt me...BUT...they (super worms) DO bite and it can be startling, and they throw a liquid at you and it smells, and they morph into totally ukie beetles. I used to just throw a handful in at my box turtles and let them have at it. But what happened was some of the worms escaped death by box turtle and they either buried them selves in the substrate or escaped the tort table altogether. Then what happens is they become these awful beetle things and they were loose in my house. I would see them walking across the ceiling (the beetles), I'd see them walking across the carpet and climbing on the sofa. I'd see the worms behind the bathroom door, or under the litter box...
Because my fat Big Bubba has arthritis so bad and he limps and can't jump I had my box springs and mattress on the floor so Bubba could get up on the bed by himself and sleep with me. So one night I feel a tickling where you don't want to feel something tickling if you are in bed alone. Well, Lil Roxie likes to sleep under the covers so I thought it was her so I just moved over but felt that tickling again, so this time I looked.....EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKK!!! I sleep naked and on my parts that we don't talk about in mixed company was one of those god awful beetles!!! So I got up (more like flew up screaming)and squashed the bug over and over again, then took a shower (don't know why, I just had to) and totally scrubbed my whatsis until it was raw...then the very next day I bought a bed frame and got my bed up off the floor. I bought steps for Bubba and haven't had beetles in my bed since...That's probably TMI, but I just had to tell it.
I still feed my box turtles superworms, but I use tweezers and I feed them all one on one. They crowd around me and I hand feed them. I have gone all thru their substrate and got out as many worms as I could find. Everyday when I change their water I get one or two beetles on the roller pan I use for water. I will keep up feeding this way until all the worms and beetles are gone. Anybody else's box turtles dig in the substrate and eat the worms and catch the beetles and eat them...but my box turtles are afraid of the beetles and they run screaming just like me...end of story...

 

[terryo]

Many years ago someone gave me two eastern hatchlings, and I was feeding them some mealworms and just left a bunch in the viv. so they could dig for them. Well, they didn't eat all of them and when they turned into beetles, the ate the two little hatchlings clean...Nothing left but the shell. I had gone away for the weekend and left them home alone...they had water, and a little dish of food....and I fed them before I left, so I thought they would be fine for 3 days. When I came home that's what I found, and the viv had a load of big black beetles in it. I learned a very hard lesson. I never leave food ...of any kind...in the encloses any more.

Maggie...that was one of the funniest stories I ever heard...naked?? I have to try it..it must feel great..LMAO!!

 

[tortoisenerd]

Wow you learn something new everyday. Here's a link showing how the worm turns into a beetle! http://pixiesexotichedgies.webs.com/FWThumbnails/superworms.jpg Gross...I couldn't keep these in the house. There are reasons I bought a vegetarian tort...hehe. I'm mostly veggie and a picky eater just like him.

 

[laurun3]

Umm...yeah I'm tearing my enclosure apart tomorrow and I'm finding that worm!

Sorry to hear about your misfortune terryo

 

[Stazz]

Lol what a funny story Lauren !! haha. I sure do hope you find that worm !!! I wouldn't be able to sleep knowing it COULD be in my house hahaha.
Thanks for the laugh & for sharing

 

[laurun3]

I know right? lol I actually didn't even wait until the next day. I started taking moss out at 2 in the morning and found the sucker!

 

[Stazz]

Yay for you finding it !! PHEW that it was in the enclosure hehehe

 

[Crazy1]

Lauren and Maggie thanks for the laugh this morning. I can just see Lauren with Turbo hanging from her hand and Maggie jumping out of bed unclothed smashing that beetle over and over while big Bubba looks on. ROFL.
Yep we have all had those moments and for those of you who have not, look what you have to look forward too.