Well, I Lost All My Gulf Coast Box Turtles!

Yvonne G

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So this a.m. the phone rings and it's a neighbor from where I USED to live 25 years ago. He was driving down the street just south of me and saw a large turtle in a puddle. He left it there then went home and called me. I knew it would be gone by the time I got there, but I hopped in my truck and went looking for a turtle in a puddle.

I didn't bring my camera with me, darn it, but sure enough, there was a turtle in a puddle. And not just ANY turtle, but a Phrynops hillari. What are the chances of a Phrynops hillari being out in my neighborhood and it NOT being MY OWN turtle? Slim to none!

So I tossed her in the back of my truck and went home. I gave the fence around the pond a very close inspection, and all the RES and soft shells and pond turtles were very interested in what I was doing. So it appears none of them had escaped. This is the fence around the pond:
escape b.jpg
escape c.jpgescape d.jpg
Most of it has a lip so they can't climb out, and none of the grass on the pond side was trampled. I was unable to see where she climbed out of the pond area. However, as I was walking past the gulf coast box turtle yard I saw this (picture taken from outside the fence:
escape a.jpg

The post is rotten and the nails had pulled out. I looked for any gulf coast box turtles and couldn't find a single one. I guess the lure of the wide open spaces was too much for them. But when I turned over their house, I found this:

escape g.jpg

So I lost three beautiful full grown gulf coast box turtles, found a lost Phrynops hillari (that I didn't know I lost) and replaced my box turtles with four new ones!

This is the foot long feeder gold fish that's left in the pond. That's just his head as he's eating floating pellets:

escape e.jpg

And here's the Phrynops before I put her back:

escape f.jpg

I'm really bummed I lost my gulf coast. Who knows how long they've been out. The sideneck was about a mile away and very dry, so she had been out for a very long time. Dang it anyway!
 

wellington

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Darn it, so sorry. At least they did leave you a parting gift of four babies.
Time to inspect all wooden fences/barriers. Unfortunately it's likely a loss will be noticed before a rotten fence if not inspected beforehand.
?the bodies return.
 

Carol S

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Do you have NextDoor.com in your neighborhood where you can post different things. They also have a LOST/FOUND section. If you have it, list that you have lost your box turtles as maybe someone has found them. Someone may have already posted it in the FOUND section.

I hope you get your box turtles back.
 

MichaelL

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Good luck finding them! There is still hope, and you got four babies!
 

bouaboua

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WOW. Sorry for your lost of those beautiful Gulf Coast but congrats with those babies.

I hope your neighbor will call you soon when those three show up in their yard.....
 

Yvonne G

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Do you have NextDoor.com in your neighborhood where you can post different things. They also have a LOST/FOUND section. If you have it, list that you have lost your box turtles as maybe someone has found them. Someone may have already posted it in the FOUND section.

I hope you get your box turtles back.
Thanks for reminding me. I'll post there today!!
 

Ray--Opo

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Sorry for your loss Yvonne, but those 4 are little cuties. Good luck finding the others.
I didn't know you also keep turtles.
 

Maggie3fan

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That's the turtle that was in the puddle. She's back, safe and sound, in the pond.
I kinda thought that was the one, but that pix sure doesn't look like what my memory is...I see a big white body in my mind, in that picture she sure looks raggedy...Lucky you got her back and I sure hope she is alright...
 

Yvonne G

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Her shell has always been that color, but he skin has a lot of white patches on it that you can't see in the picture.
 

Yvonne G

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Sorry for your loss Yvonne, but those 4 are little cuties. Good luck finding the others.
I didn't know you also keep turtles.
If you click on "spoiler my critters" at the bottom of each of my posts you can see what animals I keep here.
 

Diane Berner

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The NextDoor app works very well for returning lost animals. I found a ferret under a fire pit in my backyard in Texas and was able to find the owner through NextDoor within the day. Happy ending for everyone!
 

Relic

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That's the thing about box turtles - they LOVE patrolling the perimeter of their enclosure, ready to exploit the tiniest weakness found. After years of husbandry, I am convinced if a tunnel to the outside world was present in the center of their pen, they'd never find it...

Hope those adults show back up soon to join their progeny.
 

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