Eastern Box Turtle #14-2326

Species Name (EN): 
Species Name (LA): 
Admission Date: 
November 15, 2014
Release Date: 
May 28, 2015
Location of Rescue: 
Lynchburg, VA
Cause of Admission / Condition: 
Painted
Prognosis: 
Outcome: 
Patient Status: 
Patient Archive
Released

On November 1, a homeowner in Lynchburg found an adult Eastern Box Turtle in her yard – its carapace [upper shell] was entirely painted with pink latex paint! The turtle was taken to a local permitted wildlife rehabilitator, and was transferred to the Wildlife Center on November 15.

Other than the paint, the turtle was in good condition and had no injuries. The Wildlife Center staff began short scrubbing sessions each day to remove the latex paint; within a week, the team had most of the paint removed. The turtle should be able to be released in the spring. Turtles must be released back into their small home range for the best chance of survival.

Unfortunately, this is not the first “painted” box turtle that the Center has treated; in 2013, a very bright and colorfully painted turtle was admitted from the Natural Chimneys Campground. Wilson, the Center’s education Eastern Box Turtle, also had an entirely painted shell when he was found in 2009. If you find a healthy turtle in the wild, leave it alone! Turtle populations are declining, and it’s important to leave every healthy adult in the wild where it belongs. Read more tips on how you can help turtles here.


 

Your special donation will help the Center to provide care to this turtle ... and to the 2,500 sick, injured, and orphaned wild animals the Center will treat this year. Please help! 

Updates

June 3, 2015

During her stay at the Wildlife Center through the winter, Box Turtle #14-2326 remained bright and alert with a healthy appetite. The turtle was kept in the Center’s temperature-controlled reptile room, so she did not enter hibernation as she normally would in the wild.

The staff checked on the turtle regularly to make sure she remained at a healthy weight and stayed hydrated. Several times throughout the winter, the staff needed to administer fluids to increase her hydration level; however the turtle was eating well and was soaked weekly to help with hydration.

By late May, the weather was consistently warm and it was time to prepare the turtle for release. In total, Eastern Box Turtle #14-2326 was at the Center for 195 days!

On May 28, the turtle was transferred back to the rehabilitator who initially cared for the turtle last fall. The rehabilitator will release the turtle in the area in which she was found in November.

January 8, 2015

Eastern Box Turtle #14-2326 has been doing well so far this winter. After just two weeks of scrubbing, the turtle began looking more like herself; fortunately the latex paint was easy to remove. By mid-December, the daily scrubs and baths were no longer needed.

The turtle is eating well and will remain active throughout the long, cold winter in the Center’s warm reptile room. The veterinary team perform “turtle checks” once a week on recovered turtles; turtle checks simply include a physical examination and careful assessment of a turtle’s past injuries or issues. If all goes well throughout the winter, the turtle will be released in the spring.


 

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