Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Can you??? Because if you can't (and it sounds pretty damn stupid and cruel to me!) than someone should tell the folks at The Wisconsin Department Of Natural Resources (of all places!) Under the "Current Status" section.

http://www.dnr.state.wi.us/org/land/er/factsheets/herps/WTURTLE.HTM

If, for some reason, this is an OK practice than I'll withdraw my
comments.

There's a feedback form on the website. Here's what I sent:

"Dear Sir or Madam,

I was disheartened to find harmful advice on an otherwise wonderful website. I am referring to the fact sheet for wood turtles, http://www.dnr.state.wi.us/org/land/er/factsheets/herps/wturtle.htm#Current, which states, "Large turtles should be picked up by the tail...." Professional herpetologists and veterinarians know that picking up a turtle by the tail, particularly a large, heavy specimen, can cause the vertebrae to dislocate, resulting in a painful and possibly crippling injury. Nerve damage to the tail can affect the function of the cloaca and other bodily functions. Turtles should never be picked up by the tail. Please ask your wildlife managers to remove this statement from their website."

Katrina

Katrina, thanks so much for the advice and the letter! I'm using yours as a template to craft my own . . .I hope you won't mind! I also wanted to be sure that there wasn't something different about wood turtle anatomy I wasn't familiar with. It was so hard for me to believe that this type of misinformation would be distributed over a state wildlife web page!

Feel free. That's why I posted it. You have to give some sugar with the salt if you want letter to be accepted, or so I've found, a compliment before the complaint.

There are a lot of old myths or outdated information out there still circulating.

Katrina

Thanks for bringing this to our attention.
They have received even more feedback now.

Has anyone replied to you yet? I haven't received anything.

Katrina

The state herpetologist at the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources was appalled when he read the care sheet, and he said he'll have it changed. He doesn't know how long it will take to get the website changed, but it will be changed.

Thanks, "Oldtime" for getting the word out about this. It takes a village (actually, I like to think of it as a symphany).

Katrina