Reptile & Amphibian Forums

About 3 months ago I "acquired" what I believe to be a male Eastern Box turtle - a passing construction worker rescued it from a busy street near our house and handed it to me.

Since then, we have kept the turtle in a partly sunlit, partly shaded courtyard at our house. The courtyard is bounded by the house on three sides, and a deeply seated stone wall on the other, so there really is no means of "escape." The center of the courtyard is flagstone, but it is ringed by a planting area that is 2' across at its thinnest, about ten feet at its widest (it's a good sized courtyard). The turtle has been taking shelter among the plants.

We have provided the turtle with 3 water dishes, which we change daily. We have fed him every other day, a diet of live meal worms dusted with reptile vitamins, freeze dried gut loaded crickets, occasional berries and the like. He seems to have a huge appetite, and has become very used to our feeding him.

Here are my questions:

- I am afraid to release him in our area. Our neighborhood, once more or less country, has been heavily developed and I think it quite likely that he will end up in the wrong hands, or hurt, if I just let him go. The deer, foxes, and other animals all are rapidly being squeezed out of the area. We are located in the Maryland suburbs of Washington, DC. Reactions?

- How much should we feed him? As much as he can eat, every other day?

- What do we do about hibernation? The courtyard soil is probably fairly loose until about 1 foot depth, then I am not sure. Is this enough?

Thank you for your help. I am a first-time poster, and I apologize for any breach of this forum's etiquette.

Will

I don't know exactly where you live, but i used to live in Montgomery county and i know that the places that are safe for turtles are dwindling.

Since the animal is now used to being fed and since releasing it may cause it to look for its old home (or simply wander back to yours) and possibly be endangered by cars, kids etc i think you may have a keeper on your hands.

Now in general, we like to try to discourage the taking of wild box turtles for any reason as they are all far more threatened than their legal status indicates but in places of fast and intense development i feel that sometimes it is the better thing to do.

If you know exactly where the turtle was found and you think it is still a low traffic and fairly natural looking area you might try to release him but he may well be used to his nice lifestyle if you have had him for three months. Whether you know it or not you may have made a lifetime comittment.

Releasing turtles in areas other than those from which they came has a pretty low success rate. Turtles are highly territorial (box turtles in particular i t seems) and they will often wander about trying to get back to where they were found. So if you are thinking of bringing it to a nature preserve or park think twice. The turtle may not stay where you bring it and it also may cause problems with other turtles living in the area where you re introduce it.

I think if it cannot safely go back to where it was found, you'd be irresponsible NOT to keep it.

But you will get different opinions from others here and you should weigh what everyone says. Either way a life is in your hands and your decision will not be easy. So i wish you luck. To add to your worry here, i must tell you that the clock is ticking. In Maryland box turtles will probably not be active for more than another month and a half. They need time to adjust to the changing weather to prepare for hibernation. If you hold on to the turtle for along time and then release it it may die as it is unprepared for the cold.

Good luck and let us know what you decide.

Hi!
In last Sunday's Washington Post Metro section is an article about box turtles, and various research projects in the area which you might find of interest.
In general I agree with bloomin's post : if the area where it was picked up still has a few untouched acres, I'd consider re-patriating it, but sometimes thats just not safe, if there's too much construction taking place.
Sounds like you acquired it in June: is it a female? She may have ventured forth to lay eggs at that time and got picked up.
You can definitely hibernate it outside, since its a "local" turtle.
Regards,
Stephanie

Thank you, thank you for the replies.

Yes, we live in Montgomery County.

We're animal lovers, love the turtle and would be happy to keep "him." I know exactly where he was found, but - it's an area that, two years ago, was a field, and today is completely filled with single family homes. I just don't have much confidence that he'd be safe if I put him back where I found him. Until this turtle, I have always just helped them across the road and moved on, and would have felt guilty turning a wild animal into a pet. Things have just changed too much in this area.

And I had considered some sort of park or nature preserve relative close by - the park areas along the Potomac, for example. But that's 5 or so miles from where I "found" him.

So ... I have bought several turtle books. I'm still worried both about feeding quantities, and about hibernation. Perhaps the thing to do is to leave him in the courtyard, which he has known for a few months. He really is becoming somewhat tame around us. I could loosen some earth in a corner of the courtyard, and hope he finds it - he clearly roams the entire area. Having gotten him to eat after several weeks of worry, I'd hate to lose him now over the winter.

By loosening the soil in a corner of the courtyard that isn't a low spot that might flood, and piling leaves and hardwood mulch over top of the spot so the pile is about two feet high, you will create a good hibernation spot.
They tend to tunnel some during hibernation, so loosen an area 3x3ft or so for it.
I'm in central VA, and have clay soil, so I dug down 2 ft, mixed in leaves and peat to loosen up the clay, sloped a couple of sides of the hole so they had ramps, laid logs across the top and piled more leaves on top of that. It worked well for us last year.

Well if you keep him
there are lots of people on this list who can help you with foods and habitat needs, but i'm sure you are doing fine. I have several boxies myself but i don't hibernate my turtles "for real". I just use a cooling down period (indoors). I know lots of people don't like this method and many do use outdoor hibernation so if you keep him ask around to see if they think its okay for this winter. I'd lean toward taking him in for a few montths and cooling him as he might be a little stressed from his environment change and any weak turtle is at risk of death in hibernation.

Also you will need to consider the temps so you know when to stop feeding him.

If you get a pic we can help tell if it is a him or a her.

-good luck.

-rob

You received many thoughtful answers about the release issue so I won't repeat the same sentiments again

About feeding, yes, feed the turtle as much as he will eat at one sitting, every other day. Begin to add more variety to his diet. Add cooked sweet potatoes, grated carrots, green beans, chopped apples, grapes, cantaloupe and romaine or red leaf lettuce. I have given things like figs, persimmons, mulberries. Try other insects too like superworms, nightcrawlers, and waxworms. Grow plants that attrack slugs like hostas, petunias, etc. There are several care sheets on the 'Net where you can find a listing of good foods for box turtles.

For hibernation, pick the corner of the courtyard that you remember stays ice free and dig down and add friable soil so the turtle will use it as a spot to hibernate. Once he does, add more soil/mulch as aditional covering. Depending on how cold it gets there, add more and more soil/mulch till you know he is protected from freezing. Don't think you'll know? Stick your hand in the middle of it or use a digital thermometer with probe

Tess
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Tess
Kingsnake.com Forum Host

I'd suggest you not change a thing as far as feeding and watering although you might try some mushrooms for a little more variety and try some stuff that you might think it would consume in the wild.
As to the hibernating, if he has good weight and starts to disappear as time goes on you might let him try to hibernate. There was a suggestion, earlier on, to break up the soil and add leaves and such to the soil. I'd suggest grass clippings in addition to the mulch. The decomposition of this stuff also produces heat. I'd also suggest placing this near the foundation of the building if you can. This too will provide heat. If you really get into this, I'd recomend you pick up a book by Kenneth Dodd called the North American Box Turtle. It is interesting reading and will provide added insight into the natural history of the Boxie which should help you.
One thing, if it starts to go into a winter slowdown it if difficult to get them out and you will most likely have to tube feed it through the winter (very tough with a Boxie).
I've only been keeping these for about 3 years now and have terrible luck with them in the past. I've found that those who are the most successful with them keep them as natural as possible. This is one of the few herps that I highly recomend on keeping them naturally. It seems that you have keyed onto some very crucial points. (multiple water dishes (thanks for that one), bugs and berries...)
Good luck with it. They are dynamite turtles.
Ed

Hi. I have been keeping box turtles for 7 years now and I feed mine almost every day. Though I have found them to be omnivorous, they appear to prefer "meat" over fruit and veggies. They really love avocado and strawberries - two foods that no one else mentioned. They also enjoy Mazuri tortoise chow moistened with water which I feed to them once a week. My box turtles do not hibernate. I bring them inside when it goes in to the low 40's. If you are at all concerned about him/her living through hibernaton, just bring it indoors to avoid a potential heartache. I have heard too many sad stories of animals that did not live through hibernation. I know that many will mentally fault me for not keeping mine as naturally as I could but my box turtles are very friendly, healthy, happy guys who have flourished for many years with no problems. I even rehabilitated two of them that were given to me with very puffy skin from improper lighting and too much animal protein. It looked like they had gout. They soon recovered after my refusing to feed them any "meat" until they would readily eat fruit and veggies. I wish you the best of luck with your box turtle. Take care. Janie

Will,

I am new turtle owner this year myself. I got two females from someone who had them for ten years. I would suggest the Mid Atlantic Tortise and Turtle Society (www.matts-tutles.org) for information. The next meeting is October 18 at the Benjamin Banneker Historical Park in Olla, MD near Catonsville.