pet connection

On this date in 1986 I received a phone call from a real-estate agent who was getting ready to show a house in Oceanside, CA. When she went to look at the empty house and walked into the backyard, she discovered a big tunnel leading under the foundation and two turtles basking in the sun. She called the owners of the house who said innocently, “What turtles?” After some research, she found me.

My husband, Paul, and I have been doing reptile rescue for many years so I loaded some dog crates of various sizes in my van (because I never know what I’m going to find) and I stopped by the local farmer’s market for some strawberries and tomatoes. (Just a bit of trivia: Hungry turtles and tortoises just out of hibernation are often attracted to the color red.)

At the house, I found the tunnel was huge! It was big enough for one of my Australian Shepherds to crawl down. I knew then that at least one of the tortoises was a sulcatta (an African species commonly bred in captivity) because those guys can reach 200 pounds and they love to dig burrows. However, there wasn’t a turtle or tortoise in sight. So I rolled a couple of strawberries down the tunnel, set the rest outside the tunnel and sat down to wait. Pretty soon, up pops a sulcatta head. Yep, he was a big boy, over 100 pounds, so I let him eat a few strawberries then showed him the tomatoes I had. He ambled over.

As he was eating I shoved him into a Great Dane sized dog crate and sat back down to wait for the next contestant. A few minutes later, a small black turtle head popped up. This was not what I was expecting!

Onyx, as I came to name her, was a Gulf Coast box turtle (terrapene carolina major). Not only are these turtles not native to Southern California but at that time, they were rarely seen in the pet trade. I recognized her only because I had done quite a bit of research on the species. She also appeared to be very old; her top shell was worn completely smooth with no growth rings visable at all. But her eyes were bright and her appetite very good – she was chowing down on one of the strawberries - so I picked her up, put her in a small dog crate and we went off to see a veterinarian who specializes in reptiles.

The sulcatta got a clean bill of health so I then pulled out Onyx. He confirmed she was a Gulf Coast box turtle and confirmed that her coloring – very dark – was unusual. When I asked him how old he guessed her to be, he said, “Without a doubt in my mind, she has to be at least 100 years old.” He explained that her size – large for a box turtle – was a part of his estimate but also that her shell was so very smooth. He also said she appeared to be in great health.

I found a home for the sulcatta right away but Paul and I agreed to keep Onyx. Although box turtles can live a very long time, I felt that a 100 year old turtle deserved to be spoiled. We have some other rescued box turtles in the backyard so we after a quarantine, we added Onyx to the community.

I soon found that Onyx relishes earthworms and loves the big fat grubs that she digs up in my compost heap. She is also a fun turtle; when she sees me walk into the backyard, she comes running to me. Now I know she doesn’t love me as my dogs do, she just knows me as the source of food, but it’s still great fun to see this turtle come charging across the yard. I did learn from my mistakes, though. I no longer go out in the backyard barefoot; apparently my little toes look like grubs!

Now, 23 years later, she has given us more than 30 clutches of eggs, the vast majority of which are fertile, and she’s still going strong.  Although she is very old, the male box turtles still think she’s quite attractive, and court her frequently.

I took her out a strawberry this morning and as I told her, “Happy Birthday!” and she grabbed it from my fingers. I have no idea how much longer Onyx will live but right now, she is bright eyed, active, hungry, and enjoying life. What more can we ask for?

(Updated with a picture of the Birthday Turtle)

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