General Care Discussion :: transporting my turtle overnight

[emilybean]

Hello!

I will be moving in less than 2 weeks to another state. The drive down to my new apartment will take more than 8 hours (first I have to drive 3.5 miles, rent a truck, put all of my belongings from a storage unit into the truck, then drive 4.5 more miles). I'm leaving on a Thursday, but won't actually start to move in til the next day (Friday) when I can get my keys. So I'm staying overnight in a hotel on Thursday night. I plan on taking my turtle Mr Bean with me. I was wondering if anyone had any suggestions on how to do this?

Obviously I'm not going to let the hotel know that I'm bringing a turtle. I'm going to bring Mr Bean in a small plastic container.. I don't know the dimensions but it fits him with some room to spare and it's not clear. I'll put a towel at the bottom. He'll be in my car with me, and it doesn't have AC. I'm guessing the temperature where I'll be moving will be hot (probably 80s and sunny based on weather averages). I'll probably make a couple pit stops along the way for gas and such, so I can check on Mr Bean then. I was also thinking that for the hotel at night I could fill up the bathtub with some water and put him in there since he'll be out of water most of the day in the car.

I already read the general care page about transportation. Any other suggestions (especially regarding the hotel) are appreciated!

[steve]

I'd use a cardboard box instead. If you can keep it completely dark, he might sleep through most of the trip. As for the hotel, you can rehydrate him, let him eat, swim, etc and let him sleep in the box or somewhere dry overnight.

[justatwinturbo]

small plastic container, inside a cardboard box...make holes in both for breathing. place moist sphagnum moss in the plastic container..or paper towel will work just fine.

[emilybean]

Ohh ok, why would a cardboard box be better? I'm guessing it wouldn't get as hot inside, and it'd be easier to punch some small holes in that than a plastic container. I didn't think of a damp paper towel. I won't use moss though.. I know sometimes that sphagnum peat moss for gardens is sold with cow and chicken manure mixed in but the label doesn't say so. Paper towel sounds safer.

[justatwinturbo]

Not sure why sphagnum moss would have cow or chicken manure in it, it comes from sphagnum marshes...not somewhere that cows or chickens regularly visit. I use it in all my tubs, and filters. At any rate, the cardboard is more for security than anything, to ease the stress as much as possible.

[emilybean]

Not sure why sphagnum moss would have cow or chicken manure in it, it comes from sphagnum marshes...not somewhere that cows or chickens regularly visit. I use it in all my tubs, and filters. At any rate, the cardboard is more for security than anything, to ease the stress as much as possible.

Well when I thought of peat moss (not the kind that's meant for filters) I thought of gardening peat moss I worked at a garden center and talked to a supplier one day and he said they mix manure in the peat moss. If I particularly wanted peat moss I'd check to see if the bag says anywhere "100% sphagnum peat moss". Off topic, but manure is a better soil amendment than peat moss anyway. Just sayin

[justatwinturbo]

Ah, I see where you're getting at. Peat and sphagnum are technically different products from the same plant. When I say sphagnum, I'm talking about pure dried sphagnum moss, stems and all. Sphagnum is more so used for crafts than gardening.

[steve]

I feel a cardboard box has a little more give. Plus, rubbing against the plastic might cause some minor irritations. If Mr. Bean sleeps like a log, then no worries.

[josephkr]

You may want the box in something that is leak proof. I recently moved (across town) and I transported my turtle in a shoebox. When I got to my new apartment he'd made a mess of the box, and I was lucky it didn't ooze out into my fiance's van. Also, expect your turtle to take some time adjusting to the move. I think it was traumatizing for my turtle and it took a week or two for him to act himself, probably 3 weeks to bask normally.

[The Troops]

I will be moving from Pa to SC this coming Feb/March. Now, heres the kicker..., I will be making my trip overnight and only stopping for gas. I have 6 shelled members to move. Would the 9 hr travel be fine if i just put them in shoeboxes? I never paid attention to their sleeping habits as i sleep when they do. lol
So, in prospective, the tanks will be one of the last things emptied/packed... (about 2 hrs worth of work) My worry is... It's going to be pretty cold around this time when I move. Any suggestions to keep my guys from freezing or drying out (besides turn the heat up in my car and wrap them with blankets)?

Thanks,
Josh

[steve]

Maybe have some hot water bottles to keep them warm? I think when they're dry, they can be in cooler temps... mid-60's or so. Keep everything very dark and hopefully they'll sleep the entire trip.

[dumbork14]

sorry to resurrect an old thread, how would I know if dumbork is warm enough? we are staying on a hotel and I'm afraid we have no control on the room temps. any tips/thoughts to keep her warm?

[Kansasslider]

You should have control of the temp in your room. Is it hot or cold where your going to stay? I guess a better question would be is why are you taking your turtle ?

[steve]

A bit late to the thread, but it shouldn't be a problem.

[dumbork14]

We have no electricity on our home so we decided to stay in a hotel. It's cold in the room (we cannot change the AC unit temp). We placed her in a box with clothes as the lining to keep her warm, and there were brief moments of panic where she wasn't moving even if we prod or move her slightly. what do you suggest we do in case this happens again?