General Care Discussion :: HELP!, TURTLE WENT MISSING

[Serenade]

Earlier today my sister left her red eared slider outside in the backyard and an hour later she couldn't find her. We have checked all the turtles usual hiding places in the backyard with no luck. The backyard is completely fenced with no area big enough for the turtle to crawl out of the backyard(she is about 6-7 inches) so the only way it can truly be missing is if someone came in and took her. We do have large raspberry bushes that we think she might be hiding in, shes hid in them before but we've never had any problems finding her. The only thing I can think of is that perhaps she buried herself deep enough into the dirt that we didn't see her when searching through them.

My question is is does anyone have any idea of how we could find it if it is still in the backyard? Some way to lure it out? How long will it be before something really awful happens if we can't find it?

[DavidY]

Most likely she buried herself under some leaves or loose dirt, probably under some bushes (like the raspberries). I wouldn't think she would be too deep though, just enough to be out of sight.

If you still can't find her, you could try to leave a shallow tray of water out maybe with some of her food in it. If the weather is warm where you are she'll probably come out during the day. If it's too hot she may dig deeper to stay cool.

Turtles are good diggers and can easily dig/squeeze under a fence if there is any type of gap available. Actually to turtle proof a fence it should be sunk into the ground a couple of inches, but if it goes right to the ground that's usually enough of a deterrant. So worst case scenario is that she got past the fence and is somewhere looking for a pond or any water to hide in.

It's usually not a good idea to leave a turtle outside unsupervised for long periods of time unless you have an enclosure specifically designed for aquatic turtles. That means turtle proof fencing (they are also very good climbers), some shady areas, a pool or pond, and some type of protection from predators.

Your turtle sounds big enough to handle herself in most situations that could happen outdoors and could most likely survive a couple of days or more w/o water. If the weather is hot and dry, there's a greater chance of dehydration and she won't last as long unless she finds water. If you can't find her right away, I'd suggest putting out a lawn sprinkler and leave it running for a while to draw her out. If you still don't find her by the hottest part of the day, you should hose down all the areas where she could have dug herself in so at least she won't dehydrate as quickly.

I hope you guys can find her.

[steve]

Hi, there are some additional tips here: www.redearslider.com/lost_turtle.html

You just need to keep looking everywhere and then do it again. If it is hot, they can dig deeper than you think, so be careful when you are looking for her.

[marisa]

Welcome to the forum. If it's hot where you are, you'll probably have better luck finding her earlier in the day or late in the afternoon when she's more apt to be active. Since she's completely fenced in, she's got to be there somewhere. I'd hose the area down periodically, especially during the times she's more apt to be active (earlier and later in the day).

Good luck.

[industrial_girl_2000]

Hope you find her!

I agree with what the others said already. In addition, I would check under all the bushes, and get down on your hands & knees and crawl along the fenceline to make sure there wasn't some area there that you missed (might be a small hole that your turtle was able to squeeze thru).

Best of luck! Let us know if you find her.

[Serenade]

Thanks for the posts you guys! We found her today! My mom was looking out the kitchen window this morning and saw her crawling around one of the trees in our backyard. Fortunately she doesn't appear to be harmed in anyway. I was really worried that she would get hurt in the huge thunderstorm that happened last night

[WyredHardware]

CHEER!!

[octpusgirl8]

Wooo! You must be so relieved! I'm glad everything worked out allright

[scripta_elegans]

Hooray! The thunderstorm probably helped her stay hydrated.

[sleepygrl79]

Glad ya found her! I can only imagine how scary it'd be!

[grey goose]

The heavy rain probably drove her out of her hiding spot. You've got to watch them closely when they are outside!

[DavidY]

Congrats! I'm glad you found her.

[marisa]

Good to hear she was found.