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I just found a turtle...

PostPosted: Sat Mar 24, 2007 5:32 pm
by bubakins13
Alright this is incredibly random but here goes:
I was walking along the beach today and was crossing over a stream of land water runoff and a little object that i thought was a crab passed by so i picked it up. It was actually a baby turtle. Now i know its not a red ear slider because i already have one and despite them looking very similar, they have a lot of difference (the one i found has a plain underside, no red on its head, and a different back shell pattern). So instead of letting the little bugger go into the ocean i took him home and put him in an old small tank i had.
Now my question is, how can i tell if this is a salt water or fresh water turtle? Also if I do decide to keep it, how long before I can introduce my other turtle to them to live in the same habitat. I've had my first turtle for about 8 months now and im afraid that he will not let this turtle live in his tank (the turtle i found in about 1/4 smaller then my turtle now) or even worse the new turtle will get my turtle sick.
Im open to all suggestions. I love my first turtle and I would love to keep this one and someday let them be friends! thanks for any help! its greatly apprectiated! :D

PostPosted: Sat Mar 24, 2007 5:58 pm
by xsavingsaturdayx
It's a wild turtle....release it. You should NEVER EVER take a wild animal from its natural habitat.

PostPosted: Sat Mar 24, 2007 11:20 pm
by SpotsMama
It would be best to release the new little one back into the wild. If you really like him, why don't you check turtle rescue and see if they have one like him for adoption? Here's a good link to some rescue orgs:

www.turtlehomes.org

Depending on what part of the country you are in, if you don't find what you're looking for on here, other alternatives are available.

Good luck!

PostPosted: Mon Mar 26, 2007 2:12 pm
by kikicool
Well, sure wild animals should stay wild but... I can see why you were concerned. Were you afraid someone dumped some freshwater turts near the ocean? Because I actually found my RES IN the ocean. Perhaps someone was "freeing" him or something??

If you live in a warm area, there is a good chance it is a newborn making his way to the ocean water.

If you still have him, post a pic so we can help identify him. If he's marine, release him. If not, you may very well have rescued him. In the meantime, I would handle him as little as possible so that he doesn't get used to being captive.