Interesting observation

jeff kushner

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I moved Matilda into her new home last Saturday. While I erected the structure, she was crawling everywhere. Since she has actually moved in, she stays in one area above or below the logs or in the fitting................almost identical to the size of the area of her inside home. Kerry observed that she "seems conditioned to a certain size space"

When I move her to other sections, she quickly returns to her "own little corner in her own little chair"......

I suppose it will take her some time.....she has a zillion new things in her world. I fed her Sun and Tues. I did not feed her yesterday......I hope that when she feels some hunger, she will be motivated to explore.

Remember this is my first baby boxer.....it's all new to me too! What do you guys think?

jeffm2.jpg
 

wellington

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Is she a hatchling or full grown?
The enclosure is way too small if it's not for a hatchling. Water sources should be buried level with the ground. Food dishes should not be too high sided or a flat piece of slate is best.
 

m irwin

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Enclosure looks good - I really like the grating over the top. babies are so vulnerable to predators that adults would not be - namely rats at night and birds like crows. The baby will come around soon enough and explore. Give it time...
 

jeff kushner

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She enjoyed the first thunderstorm of her 1 yr life and she reacted like any box turtle. She was in box turtle heaven!! All heck broke loose around 4pm for ten minutes then it quieted down and rained steady. I'm able to go out and stay under the overhangs on my deck to watch from the same place I took the pic and she was running all around in the rain. God answered me and told Matilda, "explore"...lol

I have a lot of critters around for a residential area and yes, they would have already gotten her is she wasn't protected. I used to feed a fox and a hawk with mice & squirrels a few years ago from my shed and the boysenberry tree.

My phone takes weird perspectives so it's hard to see size references. Overall she has approx 13.5SF. There was actually a bit of landscaping thought that went into her home. The entire space was excavated down 12" then a bowl formed. Line of sight is very important so from anywhere along the elevated perimeter, she can view her entire home. The pond is integral and sits at the lowest point, approx 16" below the grated top. The idea was that in short order, it would settle, allowing the coconut fiber to overhang the pool...but this may soon be replaced with a concrete pool, we'll see. The solar fountain pump/light works very well though. Plants have been added to the pool and snails are arriving today for cleaning.

Step by step......
 

jeff kushner

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Wow, I almost lost little Matilda last Friday.

Let me set the scene;
With the long w/e, I packed to go over to my sweethearts house for the weekend. I live 50 miles from her and my work is 46 miles away making a big triangle....so my plan was to go to her home straight from work.

Then I remembered that Matilda's snails were arriving Friday so I came home first after all. This was fate intervening....

When I checked on Matilda, I was shocked to see her looking up at me, upside-down in her food tray which had 1" inch of water. She was straining to her head above water......if she didn't, she would drown.

God looked out for her again.....and I will never ignore the well-founded advice given above...;....had I listened, it would not have happened.



"Food dishes should not be too high sided or a flat piece of slate is best."


DO NOT use this type of food dish for a small turtle...food dish.png

Moles should be faster if they come into my yard. I do not own a dog or cat......but I'm lightning fast with a shovel....well, for 3 shovelfuls anyway....LOL

I know many folks have never actually seen a mole
mole.png
 

Jan A

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Wow, I almost lost little Matilda last Friday.

Let me set the scene;
With the long w/e, I packed to go over to my sweethearts house for the weekend. I live 50 miles from her and my work is 46 miles away making a big triangle....so my plan was to go to her home straight from work.

Then I remembered that Matilda's snails were arriving Friday so I came home first after all. This was fate intervening....

When I checked on Matilda, I was shocked to see her looking up at me, upside-down in her food tray which had 1" inch of water. She was straining to her head above water......if she didn't, she would drown.

God looked out for her again.....and I will never ignore the well-founded advice given above...;....had I listened, it would not have happened.



"Food dishes should not be too high sided or a flat piece of slate is best."


DO NOT use this type of food dish for a small turtle...View attachment 328549

Moles should be faster if they come into my yard. I do not own a dog or cat......but I'm lightning fast with a shovel....well, for 3 shovelfuls anyway....LOL

I know many folks have never actually seen a mole
View attachment 328550
So glad you were able to rescue Matilda!! She's just getting started on her journey.
 

Krista S

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Wow, I almost lost little Matilda last Friday.

Let me set the scene;
With the long w/e, I packed to go over to my sweethearts house for the weekend. I live 50 miles from her and my work is 46 miles away making a big triangle....so my plan was to go to her home straight from work.

Then I remembered that Matilda's snails were arriving Friday so I came home first after all. This was fate intervening....

When I checked on Matilda, I was shocked to see her looking up at me, upside-down in her food tray which had 1" inch of water. She was straining to her head above water......if she didn't, she would drown.

God looked out for her again.....and I will never ignore the well-founded advice given above...;....had I listened, it would not have happened.



"Food dishes should not be too high sided or a flat piece of slate is best."


DO NOT use this type of food dish for a small turtle...View attachment 328549

Moles should be faster if they come into my yard. I do not own a dog or cat......but I'm lightning fast with a shovel....well, for 3 shovelfuls anyway....LOL

I know many folks have never actually seen a mole
View attachment 328550
Yes, thank goodness you were there to rescue little Matilda! I just love reading your updates about her and her journey, so I hope you continue to post them. You’re right about the mole...I’ve never seen one before. I had to take a close look at your picture because both ends look like its butt?! I hope I don’t ever see one in real life lol. Hope Matilda is still doing well. ❤️
 

S2G

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It's funny. I'm not sure which box you have, but I run across easterns all the time. They can navigate ponds, rock faces, logs, etc in the wild. You put a funky water dish in their area in captivity & they flip over. I dont know which is worse raccoons or this demon in a cat costume. This sucker is turtle & chicken slaying machine...24 chickens, 1 eastern, & 1 3 toe in a night!!Resized_20210115_151946.jpeg
 

jeff kushner

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Jan A

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Saw this story this morning SG, thought the cat looked familiar!




That beast in your trap does NOT look like a normal house cat.... nope, it's got fire in it's eyes!

LOL
Some cats get really pissy when they're caged, particularly in a cage you're using to trap skunks, raccoons & the like. TBS, I can't tell if that cat's domestic, feral or part lynx.
 

mark1

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It's funny. I'm not sure which box you have, but I run across easterns all the time. They can navigate ponds, rock faces, logs, etc in the wild. You put a funky water dish in their area in captivity & they flip over. I dont know which is worse raccoons or this demon in a cat costume. This sucker is turtle & chicken slaying machine...24 chickens, 1 eastern, & 1 3 toe in a night!!View attachment 328703

sound like a job for a dog ........ did you find the turtles ? if not i'd look around for them .......... i've seen them take them and move them , but i've later found the turtles where they apparently gave up on them ..... did he actually bite through their shells ? the only thing i seen able bite through an adult easterns shell has been a big headed dog ......

100-1940.jpg
 

DoubleD1996!

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I moved Matilda into her new home last Saturday. While I erected the structure, she was crawling everywhere. Since she has actually moved in, she stays in one area above or below the logs or in the fitting................almost identical to the size of the area of her inside home. Kerry observed that she "seems conditioned to a certain size space"

When I move her to other sections, she quickly returns to her "own little corner in her own little chair"......

I suppose it will take her some time.....she has a zillion new things in her world. I fed her Sun and Tues. I did not feed her yesterday......I hope that when she feels some hunger, she will be motivated to explore.

Remember this is my first baby boxer.....it's all new to me too! What do you guys think?

jeffView attachment 328262
Yeah, I recently put my 10 month box turtle outside last week and it's the same story. Try putting a few worms in or spread the food around the enclosure to encourageforaging. Once they start eating they usually explore a bit to forage.
 
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