Turtle S.H.E.L.L. Tortue
a registered Canadian charitable organization dedicated to turtles
Safety Habitat Education Long Life

Ontario Turtle Emergency Care & Drop-Off Centres

• Eastern Ontario
• South Central Ontario
• South Western Ontario
• RESCUE CUES

Eastern Ontario

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South Central Ontario

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South Western Ontario

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RESCUE CUES

By far the greatest threat to the health and well-being of turtles is the highway. 

In the months of May and June and early July turtles can be found crossing roads in search of nesting grounds. Then at the end of August until the third week of September turtles cross the roads to go to their hibernation area. When you spot one, the first concern is your personal safety. Don't take chances...

If it’s safe to get the turtle, take it to the side of the road in the direction it was heading and release it. If you return it to where it was coming from, it will just try to cross the road again. Small species such as Painted, Spotted or Musk turtles can simply be picked up.... but watch out for the head: they bite! Adult Snapping turtles should be grasped at the base of the tail and pulled backward onto a shovel, piece of cardboard or carpet, car floor mat so that it is easy to tow them to the side of the highway.

Unfortunately, not all turtles are lucky in their attempts to cross the road. Many are killed and others receive life-threatening injuries. The following information is for the unlucky.

If at all possible take the injured turtle to a vet or rehabilitation centre. There, it will be treated, kept until it is fully healed and finally released back into the wild. If you do take a turtle to such a rehab centre be sure to carefully note exactly where you found it. If there are no obvious landmarks at the recovery site, note the odometer reading on your car and again at the first signed intersection

At the bottom of this article are links that should help you finding assistance in your area.

INJURED TURTLE CARE INSTRUCTIONS: 

1. One common mistake made by many is to turn the turtle upside down. Please do not place turtles in this position because it makes them very uncomfortable and it could kill a sick or injured turtle if the air sacs or lungs are compromised. Turtles cannot breathe in this position.  

2. It is best to transport an injured turtle in a container that will limit movement of the turtle and is escape proof.  Be sure the container has adequate air holes. 

3. UNDER NO CIRCUMSTANCES should an injured turtle be fed or placed in water. 

4. Keep the turtle indoors away from insects, out of direct sunlight, preferably cool and dark. This will help to reduce stress on the animal. 

5. Contact your provincial ministry of natural resources right away if you cannot identify the turtle. You cannot keep a wild turtle, it is illegal, and you need a special permit. You could contact your local rehabilitation facility because they should possess the permits and should be able to identify the species of the turtle you found.  

6. The turtle may be covered with debris such as algae, road dirt, or blood. You do not want to clean off the turtle by placing the animal under running water. The shell injuries can be subtle or obvious, but if they are the full thickness of the carapace (top of the shell), the plastron (the bottom part of the shell), or involve the bridge (the connection between the two shells, it could substantially injure the turtle further by rinsing the turtle in running water. By doing so the debris could actually be pushed into the internal organs or the water could flood exposed lungs just to name a few things that could likely occur.  

7. You can clean the turtle using gauze or damp papers towels and remove as much of the dirt and/or blood as you can. Care needs to be taken not to dislodge clotted blood as this could restart the bleeding. After the majority of the debris has been removed, you can then take a solution of betadine, at one part betadine to 9 parts water, and gently cleanse the wounds with moistened gauze in with this solution.                       

8. If there is blood present on the face or in nostrils or mouth, you can, with caution so that you don't get bitten, gently clean it away with cotton-tipped swabs. The reason for cleaning the nose and mouth of blood is to help the turtle to breathe. If you find that bleeding is continuing placing pressure on the bleed for 10 minutes or so with gauze or a cotton tipped swab will usually stop the bleeding.

9. If a limb is mangled, bleeding or broken, please do not pull the limb. The risk of further damage is likely. You can clean the limb as best as possible without pulling on it. If front limb is bleeding, you can create a pressure bandage by packing a cotton ball (or several depending upon size of turtle) between elbow and shoulder of the turtle and taping or wrapping arm of turtle into shell. If a rear limb is bleeding, mangled or broken, again clean as best as possible without pulling on it then create similar pressure/immobilizing bandage by placing cotton balls behind knee and/or in inguinal fossa (area in front of knee) and wrapping the limb to the shell . 

10. If there is a shell fracture and internal tissue is exposed, please do not rinse with Betadine, or use a first aid ointment, and do not flush with tap water. You can clean the margins of the wound with a Betadine solution and place a moistened sterile gauze on it. Then wrap the turtle. It is important to immediately get this turtle to a qualified turtle veterinarian or to a rehabilitation facility. If you are unable to get the animal to professional help within a very few hours there may be a danger of dehydration. Reptile kidneys are very fragile so rehydration can be a lifesaver.  A truly thirsty turtle will often drink from a slow-running cold tap if held with the beak near the water. Some turtles will drink out of a large dog dish. 

11. It is very important to realize that shell fractures or other injuries that do not look all that severe can be fatal and that turtles that appear to be acting normally moving around and biting can actually be fatally injured. It is far better to stay on the side of caution than to find days or weeks down the road injuries that could have been successfully treated by a qualified veterinarian were judged insignificant and thus not treated. Most open fractures and most soft tissue injuries at the very least require antibiotics; many require surgical intervention and displaced shell fractures require surgical repair. 

12. Since turtles are very long-lived, the turtle you are taking the time to stop and rescue could be decades old and have many decades left to live ... turtle people are special people. By joining them in helping the turtles of the world, you join the ranks of unique and caring individuals. 

NOTE: Organized wild animal rehabilitation has been carried on in the United States for over thirty years and consequently there are many excellent and experienced groups performing this vital work. The following rules are a slightly modified version of those on the web site of the Massachusetts Turtle Rescue, Inc. Permission to use them kindly provided by Debbie Zajchowski, Director of the group.

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