www.Texasturtles.org here to add text.
What to do if you find a turtle
More often than not the best thing to do when a turtle is encountered is to release it back to the nearest body of water or safe habitat. Land dwelling species such as box turtles remain in the same 2-3 acre area their entire lives and can die if moved elsewhere. Aquatic turtles may fare better than land dwelling species if translocated, but these also should be returned to their original environment.
After taking phone calls and receiving emails about turtles for nearly 20 yeasrs the best advice is to remove a turtle from the road but release it back into the wild as soon as possible.
I DO NOT RECOMMEND KEEPING TURTLES FOUND ON THE ROAD AS PETS THIS IS NOT A GOOD IDEA
Here are some of the many reasons why you should release turtles found on the road to a safe location as soon as possible.
* Most turtles found are aquatic species. Many times these are females in search of a nesting location. Too much stress combined with not finding a nesting site can cause some turtles to become egg bound and unable to lay their eggs. Most female turtles in Texas lay up to 3 clutches of eggs per year so the nesting season can last from March to August.
* Very few people have sufficient experience to properly keep our native turtles. Certainly there are people who maintain live turtles and are good at doing so. However, there is plenty of work and expense surrounding it. After the amount of work, money and time required to properly maintain live turtles most people decide it isn't worth the effort.
*These are animals that live about as long as we do. No one should consider owning a turtle without taking into consideration that these are long lived animals. Take this into consideration if you have a child that wants a pet turtle. I receive lots of emails from parents seeking homes for reptiles that their college aged children cannot bring on campus.
IF YOU REALLY MUST OWN A TURTLE WHY NOT ADOPT?
The Gulf Coast Turtle and Tortoise Society has an adoption program with several species in need of placement.
If you would like an identification provided for the turtle you found please send an email with a digital photo of the turtle in question.Click Here. Please include where you found the turtle as this can sometimes aid in identification
