Other Turtle Discussion :: Why never keep a found turtle?

[RunninWideOpen]

Why do so many people so strongly insist on releasing found turtles into the wild without having much information about where they were found or what the circumstances are? Maybe I'm confused, but it seems like the advice could be sending the turtles to their doom? I've read a number of posts recently like that on this and other forums?

The turtle could just as easily be an escaped pet and there may be no natural habitat of turtles in the area.

Sorry, I'm just a little frustrated. I just read a post about someone asking for advice who just found a turtle. No where on the post did it say what part of the country the person lived in or specifically where the turtle was found, but it sounded like a residential neighborhood. Unfortunately the finder had already released the turtle (which he said looked sick and injured). He could just as easily lived in Alaska, but no one ever asked!

I had someone STRONGLY INSISTING to me that I release Crush into the wild when I first got her because her shell condition sounded like she was a wild turtle, but there is NO suitable habitat anywhere near here for her to live.

Just please, before you go telling people how terrible they are for picking up a lost turtle and that they need to release it right away, find out more information. You could be doing more harm than good.

Sorry, just had to vent. I seem to always find those threads right after the person releases the poor turtle.

[Tenodera]

That's very true!

[kornygerm]

When i feel like i have no support from noone to help with my res..i feel like releasing them, but they wouldnt survive very long, since i live in a very high temp city..plus i have a bond to both of them, so i just dont see myself doing that.

[DavidY]

Yea, it's got to be a judgement call by the person who found the turtle. But if the turtle is perfectly healthy and it is a native species, then it should be released in a suitable nearby habitat (pond, lake, etc).

Collection or possession of native species is illegal in a lot of states. Also, if you already have similar species as pets, the wild caught one could transmit pathogens to your pets that could kill them (since they don't have the same antibodies or immunities that the wild animals have built up).

Another good reason is if the wild animal is more than a few weeks old, it has already most likely become accustomed to life in the wide open. Bringing it into captivity might be too stressful for them or at the very least be like imprisonment. In general, captive bred animals do much better in captivity than wild caught animals (for obvious reasons).

If the animal is injured, then it should be brought to a veterinarian who is willing to treat local wildlife. Once it is healthy again, it should be released back into its own natural environment.

Of course if you live in Alaska or Death Valley and you find a baby RES in the middle of a city or something, then you can rightly assume it's an escaped pet. At that point, a "Found" ad should be taken out to locate the little guys true owner as that person is probably frantically tearing their house inside out looking for it, especially after they posted on here that they just lost their baby and we told them to look under everything cause turtles like to hide under tight places!

These are just my feelings of what should be done under those circumstances. But I would never tell anyone they were a terrible person for doing something different. There can be benefits to both the person and the found animal if the right environment is provided. I sometimes will keep a new snake or turtle that I've caught for a few days to a couple of weeks to observe them, but I always return them to where I found them mostly because of the guilt I feel for taking them from their home in the first place.

[RunninWideOpen]

Ya, I understand there are a lot of instances where it is best to release them, but most of these threads I've read show no evidence of that. There's not enough information in the thread to even tell where the person lives or if it is a native species. And the last one I read, the turtle WAS injured.

The person says they found a turtle and asks for advice and the first reply is RELEASE IT RIGHT AWAY.

I am just asking for some thought to be put into before people respond like that based off of assumptions.

[DavidY]

Hmm, I agree. It's never good to jump to conclusions or make sweeping statements before knowing all the facts. I also try not to bully anyone or order anyone to do anything as that really isn't my place to do that. All we should do is offer our advice and may opinions, but it's usually best to let others make up their own minds.

Which thread was that? I don't remember reading anything like that recently (but then again, my memory is not the greatest ).

[RunninWideOpen]

The one I just read is this one, I just realized it's actually kinda an old thread:

http://www.redearslider.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=5323

About a found box turtle. In this one you can actually see where the finder is from, and I think the turtle may actually be a native species, but it was never discussed, and it may have bee injured. This thread wasn't the worst one I've seen, just the one that spawned this thread.

[RunninWideOpen]

Wow DavidY, you joined 2 months ago and already have posted 1529 times! I don't even think that would be possible with my computer! lol

[DavidY]

Hmm, yea that thread seemed okay to me, but I'm sure there have been some where someone has gotten a little over zealous before. It happens sometimes.

Ya, I need to get a life, huh? I dunno, before I found this site I never participated a whole lot in other forums or on the internet in general. Only if I had something specific I was looking for or if someone asked a question that no one else was able to answer and I felt that I could help. But this forum...I just really like the people here and I've become so fascinated by my RES and other people's different turtles too. I've become a turtle nerd!

[Blue Flamingo]

RunninWideOpen If you see something like that happening you could always jump into the conversation and state your opinion and give out some advice for the person. Then they can come to the right decision on there own, Also just because someone on the forum gives bad advice or whatever doesn’t mean that the person receiving that advice will actually listen. But I do agree people should think before giving advice on situations that could be critical to the health and well being of the animal.

[octpusgirl8]

I've become a turtle nerd!

You're not the only one I go on here all the time because all i want to talk about sometimes is turtles turtles turtles and i think my friends get sick of it. My boyfriend tolerates it, but i think sometimes he is jealous of Turtley

[SpotsMama]

Yeah, DavidY, from one turtle nerd to another, you're in good company here!

And Runninwideopen, I think you make a good point. The first question to ask when talking to someone about a found turtle should be....where are you?

[grey goose]

From my own experience, most turts don't wander very far from their habitat. Outside of injury or sickness, the reasons vary. Males may get driven out of a shrinking habitat by dominant males only to find that's the ONLY habitat for miles...females getting lost before or after laying eggs...my first thoughts after finding them, if they are in good condition, is where to take them, habitat-wise. I've never even thought of giving them a home. Not just because it illegal, it just doesn't seem right to me. I'm not condemning people who do (unless they are catching and selling them ) but I just think the priority should be that a wild turt should be allowed to stay wild.

[Hoooneylynn]

my name is jessica.... J-E-S-S-I-C-A... I am a turtle addict but I still cant keep up with david's posts.

[grey goose]

I say we make DavidY a mod....give him something to do around here.