Urgent Care :: Found a RES

[Dan]

A freind of mine found a RES in her yard and called me for advice. I went and picked it up and we tried to determine if it was wild and where it would have lived. Given that there is no water near her house, we determined that it must be a captive turtle on the loose. I brought it home and placed it in a covered pond in my yard which has nice basking areas and over 100 gallons of water to swim in. The temperatures outside have been lows-45 degrees to 65 for the highs. I wouldn't think this to be too cold, but the turtle is very dosile and showing no interest in food still after 4 days. Last night, it didn't go into the water over night and this struck me as strange. The turtle is about 7 inches long, and looks healthy. The food options have been cooked chicken, ham, soft cat food, and turtle pellets. Any feedback is appreciated.

[sarah]

Um...i don't know about outside turtles, considering mine live inside. But I would guess that the temperatures are much to low for your little buddy.
My turtle wouldn't eat when we first brought her home, and part of this was due to lack proper temps. and lights.

If you are thinking this is a turtle that someone dumped (are those your thoughts?) then wouldn't there be a possiblilty that this was an inside turtle at one point? Meaning the change in temps may not be healthy....

Of course, the experts will be along in awhile to tell you what they think :p

[missibsu]

I know that inside my turtles reside in a nice and comfy 78 degrees...and the temp is steady. If the turtle were used to the outside, then I suppose that he would be fine. If you truly believe it was once an inside turtle, then the temps are kind of low. People on here who have tried to hibernate their turtles haven't been very successful and I know that isn't recommended.

On another note...turtles take some time to adapt to their surroundings. Mine took a few days before they decided they were going to eat. I wouldn't offer the cat food, the chicken, or ham. If anything continue with the pellets and maybe soak them in tuna juice. You can also throw in some romaine lettuce and other veggies on the feeding list. The older the turtles get the more vegetarian they become.

Good luck, and keep us posted!