Top products from r/normanok

Thank you for being a caring individual who has wholehearted intentions for this turtle. However, I really want you to understand what you're getting yourself into.

I fully understand your desire to keep this super cool animal as a pet, but before you commit let me arm you with as much knowledge as I can. I was once in your shoes when I came across a hatchling in 1998 I named Georgie. Georgie is a Common musk AKA stinkpot and I started out woefully ignorant to the cost and maintenance involved in owning a turtle.

Now, for a slider the males tend to get around 7"-9" varying where the females can get a whopping 10"-12". Remember that every inch of turtle's SCL (length of shell from behind head to tail) requires about 10g water. If you've got a female there is the potential of needing a 120 gallon aquarium. This is not a terribly unreasonable price range for what you would need to house a larger full grown female slider. On top of that you will need to rig an out of water nesting box for your turtle to lay her eggs. If she does not have a place to lay her eggs it is extremely unlikely she will lay them in the water and she will possibly become "egg bound". This can absolutely be painfully fatal.

If you are lucky and working with a male he will be smaller, the cost of an appropriate enclosure will be reduced by a little, and you won't have to worry about nesting boxes. He will still need an area he can climb out of the water to dry completely while basking. For basking areas this is the ideal bulb for most any turtle. These need to be replaced every 9-12 months but no later than 12 months. They may still shine light but they will not function in a capacity acceptable for a reptile any longer.

As far as a filter you will be looking at a minimum of $150 upfront investment, but the filter replacement material can be managed at reasonable prices over time. Another option is creating your own. If you're interested in learning how let me know. I have some good resources. They may not be pretty but holy cow are they cost effective and efficient.

Now. The big thing here I really want to press is that this is an adult wild animal. You wouldn't bring a bear or a cougar home. You probably wouldn't bring an adult skunk or porcupine home. Unfortunately for turtles they are cool, cute, and appear weak/defenseless to many people and we end up in situations like this. A caring, wonderful individual trying to do right by an awesome animal but in the long run you're really not helping him/her.

You could set things up to be a decent home for this animal but you cannot replace the natural habitat it deserves to be in.

If you are interested in owning a turtle I have some awesome species suggestions that are much smaller and more manageable for indoor living. There is an amazing turtle subreddit called /r/turtle that is overflowing with advice and assistance to new turtle owners or those who are interested in becoming one.

I know how easy, better than many, it is to get attached and just want to keep the turtle. To this day I try to give my turtle the best life I can to make up for taking him from the beautiful and fantastic San Marcos river home he once had. Perhaps he wouldn't have survived and may have been eaten but as Americans I'm pretty sure our motto is to live free or die trying.

Your best option is to return him/her to EXACTLY the location (not with in a few miles but like a few yards if possible) they were at when you found it. It's best for the turtle, it's fair to the environment, and it gives you the opportunity to devote a bit of time and interest into looking into turtle care and finding a species that works for you!

Long ago I got a book called Earning Money Without a Job.
(can get at Amazon for a penny plus $4 shipping) http://www.amazon.com/dp/0805014586/

The first part is kind of inspirational, but goes on about what it takes to be self-employed. I was a little scared by that part. The second part lists maybe hundreds of ideas for self-employment. I put an ad in the paper and started doing odd jobs. Later I worked in some special restaurants, later went to vo-tech, studied electronics, had some computer jobs, and later got laid off after having to lay off everyone in my department as the company died. I read that book again. This time I was going to do yardwork. This time I was more interested in the first part of the book. I have been happily self-employed for 16 years since then. You might not want to do yardwork (though that is always there - the work in Norman is unlimited), but I recommend this book highly. You might be able to advertise as a tutor in the fields you have taught. Or who knows what kinds of ideas you can come up with. But I believe there are infinite opportunities that we can find or create for ourselves. You might be able to be very happy with some kind of self-employment. Or it could be a temporary thing. You can always think something up, put an ad in the paper or on Craig's list and see what happens.

As for minor health issues - hopefully they can be addressed. I have many and am always working on self-healing, self-therapy.
If you have problems with your hands, get this book - (cheap at amazon) - Conquering Carpal Tunnel Syndrome and Other Repetitive Strain Injuries - Sharon Butler
http://www.amazon.com/dp/1572240393/

Temporary agencies is an idea, though ideally you have a car as well as phone. I am surprised it is so hard to get into a convenience store. I wouldn't give up on that. Atwoods is always hiring, though they might want you to be able to do some lifting. But 50lbs should be sufficient. Natural Grocers is a pretty premium job, but they really work people hard. Sprouts would probably be easier to get into.

I used to work in restaurants and have always advised anyone looking for a restaurant job to just apply wherever you might want to work, rather than at wherever they are advertising. (or just go apply at dozens of them) Because all restaurants have a lot of turnover. I used to like just washing dishes. I would walk in, ask if they needed a dishwasher, and they would say "can you start right now?" That actually happened several times. Once you are in, you might be able to shift to other jobs, and maybe get to be a manager. Most restaurant work is minimum wage, but sometimes you get some cheap or free food. But waiting tables/bartending gets you into some tips.

I have heard that it is easy to become a substitute teacher in public schools, but I don't know anything about that.

The most depressing times in my life were when I did not have a job. Hang in there, keep looking, keep thinking about it, keep reaching out for advice. And good luck!

(knowing what field you taught in might give people more ideas for you)

It's a red eared slider or maybe a map turtle. Either way it's a water turtle. If you are going to keep it it needs a pretty big aquarium full of water with a place to bask and a heat light.

They make great pets, I had two for years, and you can buy aquatic turtle food for them at nearly any pet food store. Be careful, even tame they will bite, and they will remove as much of your finger as they can! I lost 1/4 inch of my fingertip that way once, to a turtle I raised from a baby. RES are pretty popular as pets, so any pet store will give you all the information you need and probably has some books on hand.

I've heard that wild caught turtles will often never adjust to captive life and refuse to eat turtle food. If your turtle does not eat in 2 days or so, you'd better let him loose.

If you do let him loose, you need to know that these turtles are territorial, and will try to find their way home if you let them loose in a strange place. This is basically a death sentence near any roads. Your best bet is to let him out near where you found him and near a pond. If you do think that where you found him is too dangerous for a turtle to live, take him DEEP into the woods, and let him out near water (like within a couple feet of a lake or pond).

/u/cam3113 is right, this guy probably had nothing to fear from a snake. Turtles are well protected against snakes and the snakes know it.

If you think he's injured in any way, contact wildcare oklahoma. They think like you (and me) and not like /u/billythepilgrim .

Edit: I've been calling it a him because of those long front nails. The giveaway is the tail. If the tail is nearly as long as the back leg, it's a male. If it's about half the length of the back leg, it's a female.