Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Last week my friend found a baby snapping turtle outside of her dorm. Its only about an inch long (not including tail) so she took it in, becuase there was no place near to release it. We have no idea how it got there. Well anyways, i know this is a RES forum, but i thought maybe you guys could tell me if its a good idea to let it go now, before it gets too cold, or should i take it in for the winter until it warms up ? Im afraid its too little to survive the very cold winters we have here.(im in Canada) I already have the stuff to set up a temp home for the little guy. Also, its not eating yet, are they like young RES and mostly eat meat ?
thanks for the help

I would keep it for the winter at this point, seeing how most likely it was a released pet in the first place. Put it in a 10-20 gallon tank(for starters), and put a UV light over him(reptisun 5.0 is the probably the best light there is). Make sure the water is sitting close to 78 degrees and in your case you might want to sent it at 80 or so to warm the little guy up. Snappers arent big baskers but there should always be a place to get out if need be. What have you been trying to feed him? Snappers will basically eat anything, start out by offering shrimp and chopped fish(rosey reds, minnow, mollies, shiners) and worms(avoid feeder goldfish). Then from there start introducing commercial food if he'll accept it,(mine always did, but all turtles are different). Make sure you have a good filter also, aquaclear seem to be good "cheap" filters (Its also necessary to do 1/3 to 2/3 water changes every week). When spring rolls around if you no longer want the snapper DO NOT let him go, not only is it illegal in most places, but your putting other snappers at risk of disease and/or parasites your turtle might have. Try a local zoo or reptile adoption agency(I believe theres on somewhere on Kingsnake.com), or just see if theres anyone willing to take it in. Hope this helps.

So I shouldn't release him in the spring ? I do live in an area where snappers are common. (in fact I resucued one from the road last year) I doubt he was a pet, he was probably found by a kid and then ditched. I would rather see him go back to the wild, then take the chance that he might not find a good home. I wouldn't be able to keep him when he's bigger becuase he probably wouldn't get along with my RES. I'll try the food you suggested though, thanks.

A lot of people do release them, but where I live, its illegal. I'd hate to have one of my turtles spread disease to the wild community, plus its often a hard adjustment for captive turtles to live in the wild. You are right the RES and snapper will not get along for long, and its best to keep these breeds separate in fear of losing RES appendages. Start looking for a good home now or you could try releasing him before its to late, my guess is tho that you have already had a hard frost there?

Its also a good idea to keep these 2 species separate for fear of losing snapping turtle appendages. I had a 3" RES bite the tails off 2 hatchling snappers once. As far as letting the turtle go, if you want to release it do it now. Snapping turtles dont need to "learn" how to hibernate, it comes naturally. If the turtle falls prey to another animal, it would be very natural as only a small percentage of wild babies reach adult hood. I suggest you let nature take its course, whatever it may be.

Also, there is a snapping turtle forum on the same page as the list for this forum.
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Ill talk to my friend and see what she says about releasing him. Yeah, I realized a little too late about the snapping turtle forum, sorry. Thanks for the input.

Its not that cold yet here,(in my opinion) but I still think its too late and he's too young for him to get adjusted. I will talk to my friend that found him and see what she thinks. If we don't find anyone who wants to keep him, perhaps we'll release him in the early spring. I don't think its illegal here to release snapping turltes becuase they are the only kind of turtles that live here and can survive this weather. If he's not well in the spring I'll keep him so he can't spread anything though. I think this is the best thing for the little guy.

Thank you for the help. Muchly appreciated.

healthy turtles that have spent lots of time in captivity can spread things to the wild turtles. If youre going to release him, you need to do it NOW!!! There is still enough time for him to prepare for winter.
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