Hello!
So I was out walking next to a pond, and I found a box turtle stuck in a mud hole. I found it strange that an adult EBT would get stuck there; I saw many turtle swim to the other side with no trouble. But here it was, its head stuck in the mud. I pulled it out, and after getting the mud off of it, I noticed that it looked weird for an Eastern box turtle. It had a normal shell, but the marking on its skin consisted of squiggly bars and thin stripes rather than splotches, and the underside of its neck, its limbs, and those little pockets where the legs are tucked in when it gets scared (don't know the name for those :/) are bright white with back spots. Its head is thin and narrow, rather than big and bulky. It also tried to follow me, and didn't struggle when I picked it up. I live in an area where EBTs are illegal to sell or keep, and I heard that some breeders have hybridized EBTs with other box turtles to create babies that are legal to sell, since the babies are not considered EBTs. Perhaps this turtle is one? I also think that this turtle was once a pet, hybrid or not. It got stuck in a mud hole which wild turtles can cross, it is skinny and hungry, and responds well to people. Can someone help me?????
So I was out walking next to a pond, and I found a box turtle stuck in a mud hole. I found it strange that an adult EBT would get stuck there; I saw many turtle swim to the other side with no trouble. But here it was, its head stuck in the mud. I pulled it out, and after getting the mud off of it, I noticed that it looked weird for an Eastern box turtle. It had a normal shell, but the marking on its skin consisted of squiggly bars and thin stripes rather than splotches, and the underside of its neck, its limbs, and those little pockets where the legs are tucked in when it gets scared (don't know the name for those :/) are bright white with back spots. Its head is thin and narrow, rather than big and bulky. It also tried to follow me, and didn't struggle when I picked it up. I live in an area where EBTs are illegal to sell or keep, and I heard that some breeders have hybridized EBTs with other box turtles to create babies that are legal to sell, since the babies are not considered EBTs. Perhaps this turtle is one? I also think that this turtle was once a pet, hybrid or not. It got stuck in a mud hole which wild turtles can cross, it is skinny and hungry, and responds well to people. Can someone help me?????
