Thank you!Can you post a photo of your turtle and you may be able to get it identified here on the forum. ? Welcome
You can do it right here. Then when he is ID'ed, future posts can be on that species' subforum.Thank you!
Is there a specific thread for that? Or is it okay to do it here in this one?
Cool. Thank you!You can do it right here. Then when he is ID'ed, future posts can be on that species' subforum.
Yeah southern Az. So complete desert. From google pictures he seems more desert than ornate. But I’m no expert.Looks to be either an ornate box turtle or possibly the desert/Sonoran box subspecies. Either way, it's had a tough life. Are you in southern Arizona?
Did not know it was illegal. I live in a complex and it’s nothing but buildings around so I don’t think I’ll put it right back where I found it since it’s more likely to die that way. It must have really wandered far. I will be looking into what to properly do with it though, and make sure I get updated on proper care while I research that.It looks like either way, it's illegal to take a box turtle from the wild in Az. It might not be bad to put it back where you found it. There are a lot of captive bred tortoises available in Az through http://www.arizonatortoisecompound.com if you're interested in keeping one. They have a variety of sizes and species.
But yes, otherwise, I would check out the American box turtle sub forum.
At the time I found him a neighbor that had been keeping turtles had moved out. Our complex makes zero sense as a natural environment for turtles, so current theory is he escaped from them, and I would say thankfully so with the condition of his shell.If you've had him for over a year, you cannot release him into the wild. Let's get a positive ID on him, and then decide what to do.
My complex is of town houses so patios are small with very little dirt or none at all. Dogs are a common pet and we have stray cats all over. We’ve also had coyotes come waltzing in and an owl migrates here in the winter. I wouldn’t doubt if one of these predators had gotten hold of him at some point.Hi and welcome!
Please don't release this turtle. It looks like a gulf coast, and he's NOT native to Arizona. Chances are it's one your neighbor left behind when he moved out. I think its safe to say this is YOUR turtle now. You've had him for a year!
Looks like he was used as a canine chew toy in the past.
I had a sulcata years back and used just water and a toothbrush wen I would clean him. Is that the best method, or should I be using something else?No, all that damage is old and well healed and won't cause pain at all under a gentle scrubbing.