Help the Turtles

Why did the turtle cross the road? Who knows! It’s summertime! With warmer temperatures, there will be a lot more wildlife activity going on. This includes the amount of turtles attempting to cross the street! While their tough shells protect them from most things, it won’t save these reptiles from getting run over by a car. Please help our little friends out by stopping for them to cross the road, or by giving them a hand. If you do need to give them a lift, learn how to carry a turtle here!

For a small turtle, grab it on either side of its shell behind the front legs. While the reptile will still be able to kick its leg, most of the time it will choose to retreat into the shell. While you are walking with the animal, try to keep it low to the ground. This is because the animal can still wriggle free from your hold and hurt itself.

If you find a turtle on the larger side that has a long tail, this might be a snapping turtle. While you can still help this reptile across the road, it is best not to try and pick it up. My neighbor helped one last summer by using a large, flat shovel. It was still hard to do, because the turtle was big and heavy. Luckily, the neighbor kept him close to the ground, too. Because he tried to snap backwards, and fell off the shovel! So instead of picking it up, find a blunt object (a book or the backside of a shovel, or something similar) and push the animal from behind.

When helping a turtle cross the street, always take it in the direction it was going. If you change directions, it will simply attempt to cross the road again. Once you have helped the reptile get safely across, you may want to watch it for a moment to be sure that it is heading away from the street. Finally, wash your hands or use hand sanitizer after handling any reptile. A safe turtle, is a happy turtle!

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