General Care Discussion :: Nails

[mini]

my turtle's nails are very sharp. everytime i take it out of the tank to eat and poop, they scratch hard on me..... how do you avoid scratches from the turtle? i don't want to clip its nails.....

[steve]

Have you tried using both hands to pick up your turtle? To avoid serious scratching, I try to pick up my turtle between front and rear limbs.

[Daniel3507]

you might just have to start wearing leather gloves

[Raphulk]

i personally wear those yellow rubber gloves some people use to wash dishes and stuff. works like a charm for rough nails and hard bites :]

[marisa]

How big is he? I used to hold a towel in one hand and quickly place my RES on it, then fold it over him and hold it so he couldn't escape (and couldn't scratch).

[TheBean]

When I hold Bean, I let him lay flat on the palm of my hand (his plastron is on my palm) and I gently, but firmly grip him with my fingers. In this position, he doesn't squirm nearly as much (I guess since his plastron is laying on something, he feels more secure) and he can't scratch. He can push with his legs, but he can't scratch.

[SpotsMama]

Whenever I have to carry Spot anywhere I carry him in a plastic bucket. My main concern is that I don't want to accidently drop him, but of course he also can't scratch me when he's in the bucket.

[ChocoTurtle]

gloves

[PcBuilder14]

Mine are still small so I just put one finger in the middle of the top and bottom of his shell.

[mini]

my Rockie's shell is 4.25 inches long. i think it's a girl. so the front nails are not as long. but she's still strong enough to make me feel painful when scratch on me though it's just a short distance to hold it from her own tank to the small feeding tank. the best i can do was hold her from her back where her back feet work like a pair of tongs and tried to grip me. the chance of getting scratch is less but sometimes still get scratched.

is it okay to use the rubber gloves to hold the turtle? they smell very rubbery.

[meltedspork]

I use an old dishcloth for Toby. I fold it up and put it in my left hand, then pick him up with my right and place him on the towel. It kind of wraps around him like a taco, lol, but it keeps him calm and keeps me from getting scratched.