As a child, I had a collection of local turtles - handful of painters, a young snapper, a spotted or two and maybe a stinkpot. My dad would bring them home once in a while if he caught one crossing the road. During the winter, we hibernated them in the cellar in a big old wooden box in the corner. No water, no soil, just the bare wood and 5 or 6 turtles. We'd place them in the box in November, and take them out in April.
This is in New England.
The amazing thing is, we never lost a turtle. In fact, this went on for years with no ill effects. Nowadays, I'm a lot more cautious. I am considering hibernating a rehabbed turtle indoors, but after reading on the web how I "should leave it experts" and how difficult it is, I wonder - is the web full of disinformation or was I just plain lucky as a kid? I suspect a little of both....
Please advise.
