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Hi all - Any suggestions about how to find a 2" healthy RES turtle that seems to have instantly vanished in my house? My 11-year-old son will be so upset if I do not find it. I let it out of its tank to walk around...he is an active little guy. I turned my back on it for no more than one minute. I checked on him again, and he was gone. I can't find him anywhere and I've looked all over!!! Any suggestions? We've had him since August.

look under couches and chairs. He/she will probably go where it feels safe.

Hoo boy....First, close all the doors. If he's on the second floor, block the stairs with something. Then take your shoes off. Start your search near where you last seen him (they won't usually travel too far, just far enough to find a dark place to hide). Work your way out (watch where you step!) and look under ALL furniture, cabinets, behind drapes, etc., etc. Use a flashlight. My guess is he is under a chair, couch, bed, TV or entertainment center, covered in dust bunnies. Good luck.......

I have looked everywhere. I am so totally perplexed at how fast this guy disappeared. I just spoke to my son on the phone about his turtle's disappearance. He was surprisingly cool. Well, since I cannot find him, my next question is: how long can turtles stay out of water before it hurts them? Because, for all I know, I have a turtle under my refrigerator which I cannot possibly get to.

Since you have a baby,i dont think he can stay without water for long.Probably no more than 6 hours and even that is TOO much,what you can do is place little bowls of water everywhere in your house and double check everywhere you looked.

Thanks - That's a good suggestion. I'll set the bowls of water out. I'm picking my son up from the skatepark so he can help me look now. Appreciate all the input!

Good luck,also if you have the air conditioner on,TURN IT OFF NOW! atleast until you find your turtle.

tyco got out when we first moved into this apartment and was gone for a week and one day. when he got REALLY dry he came out and waited for someone to find him. they're smart animals.

MY SON, who came back from the skatepark early just to look for his turtle, FOUND HIM!!! Moral to the story, make sure there are no tears on the underside of your furniture. Because that's where he was. He crawled up a piece of fabric and was hiding inside the wooden frame of the chair for nearly three hours. Despite my having looked there at least 6 times, my beautiful boy persisted, used his instinct, and found him! I felt really bad there for a few hours. Thanks to all for everyone's support.

Good for you. The lesson here is don't let your turt out of his tank, they can become scared, stressed and disoriented.....

I do have to put in here that baby red ears are shipped overnight left out of water for longer then 6 hours and are fine. I personally have dry docked several for more then 8 hours over night and they are fine.

Glad you found your turtle. Congrats.
Next time practice a little more caution.
If your going to turn your back on him even for a second. Put him back in his tank.

Whew! So glad you found him!