Afraid of Snapping Turtles

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SandDeku

Arachnobaron
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Sep 15, 2008
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594
Tleilaxu said:
Funny how the OP overlooks that in all the cases the snapping turtles are getting harassed... seriously they are calm when left alone. And pet ones can calm down and behave no worse than normal turtles... I am way more afraid of people, than I ever will be of snappers.
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Agreed. Plus it's not a "bad" pet if you have the following:
1)Experience with turtles--- especially musk turtles(basically musk turtles are literary like much smaller versions of snappers)
2)Time: You need to give some time of your day for them
3)Space: Atleast a min would be IMO(don't anyone yell their lungs off at me now) but would be a 120g(4ft long 2ft wide x2ft tall if I recall). WITH 10x more filtration you would use for the larger tank. Though bigger is better. I'd rather see one in a 6ft longx 2-3ft wide x 2ft tall one.
4)Cash: They're very pricey to care for but cheap to buy. :p You need to give em a proper diet. You can spend well over 10dollars weekly on foods for it. Unless you find a good way to keep this cost down then yeah.... Plus water changes, plus filters, etc.
5)Common sense: obv. shiz is obv shiz. You don't put your god friggin' hand in its mouth. You don't put your friggin' hand anywhere above the lower mid section of its shell. You don't friggin' pick it by the tail(it's dangerous FOR both of you!). You don't friggin' harrass it. Etc.

That being said if you have time, space, cash, and common obv sense you could keep one.
 
catfishrod69

catfishrod69

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rednecks arent always what they seem....i have never lived in a town, never will, always been in the woods hunting, fishing, trapping, shooting, making crazy redneck things that i cannot go farther into...but anyways i consider myself and about all the people that are my best friends rednecks...and as far as snappers, they arent scary...ive broken ice during trapping, and pulled them out by hand..i caught one that was huge, 4 foot long shell, head as thick as my thigh, he got away only because i had hold of his tail, and he was too strong for me to hold onto, and was pulling me farhter into the creek, so there was nothing i could do but let him pull out of my grasp and be mad he got away..........try a leatherback turtle, hold it by its tail, it can reach right around and bite you cause they have long necks, and can and will chase you on land, running as fast as a dog...best way to hold them is by the neck.
 
E

Entomancer

Arachnobaron
Joined
Oct 29, 2010
Messages
351
SDiego said:
Weren't you afraid of them when you moved them? Their reach is suprisingly far. I wouldn't handle them.
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Contradicting ourselves now, are we?

I'm fortunate enough to have befriended one of the best field herpetologists in Oregon, and he brought an adult female Chelydra Serpentina to show to me and a few others. It was fairly docile, but frightened by the number of people that were standing around it.

He showed us how to pick them up properly, without harming the turtle and without getting our fingers torn off. It went fine, and I wasn't scared in the slightest. The turtle did strike the plastic container it was brought in (a huge rubbermaid bin), but I was more awed than frightened.

I'm sorry, but I really don't have much respect for these kinds of fears. Snapping turtles will only bite defensively out of the water, and will otherwise swim away from things that they deem threatening. Irrational fears about how dangerous an animal might be are based in such things as heresay and reality television and only serve to breed misunderstanding and stupidity.

They need to stamped out; they are archaic and ignorant, and belong in the past, not the present.

EDIT:

catfishrod69 said:
rednecks arent always what they seem....i have never lived in a town, never will, always been in the woods hunting, fishing, trapping, shooting, making crazy redneck things that i cannot go farther into...but anyways i consider myself and about all the people that are my best friends rednecks...and as far as snappers, they arent scary...ive broken ice during trapping, and pulled them out by hand..i caught one that was huge, 4 foot long shell, head as thick as my thigh, he got away only because i had hold of his tail, and he was too strong for me to hold onto, and was pulling me farhter into the creek, so there was nothing i could do but let him pull out of my grasp and be mad he got away..........try a leatherback turtle, hold it by its tail, it can reach right around and bite you cause they have long necks, and can and will chase you on land, running as fast as a dog...best way to hold them is by the neck.
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Rednecks are discriminated against in the herpetological community because they don't bother to respect the land and animals that they interact with.

For example, your "leatherback". For starters, the turtle you are referring to is most likely the aforementioned Snakehead Snapper, Chelydra Serpentina, and not a Leatherback, which is a strictly marine species.

Also, Aquatic turtles breathe using a special bellows-like structure in their neck, and holding the neck is a great way to suffocate or at least greatly stress a snapping turtle far more than it needs to be. In reality, the best way to pick up a Snakehead snapper is to grasp the keels of the shell to the left and right of the tail on both sides (above their legs) and then lift them up from that point. The tail is also a dangerous way to do it. The tail houses a portion of the animal's vertebrae, and pulling on the tail therefore also means that you are pulling on its backbone.

Finally, if it was wintertime and you broke through ice to remove a turtle from a creekbed, you may have just interrupted a turtle in the midst of hibernating, which is a great way to make them sick or kill them by exposing them to the cold air, which will always be colder than the water under the ice, which is where many aquatic turtles hibernate for that exact reason.
 
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F

Formerphobe

Arachnoking
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Snapping turtles will only bite defensively out of the water
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East coast snappers aren't particular if they are in the water or out. They will bite chunks out of swimmers, harassers, and innocent bystanders alike. Which is one reason why I don't swim in areas where I can't see the bottom - I like my toes just fine where they are! They're like any other wild animal, just more capable than many of defending themselves when disturbed or provoked.

I keep a fold up latrine shovel in my car that frequently doubles as a tool to assist large snappers across local roads. I grab them by the tail and slide the shovel under the plastron to support their weight for the transport. Anyone who doesn't respect them is a fool.

This redneck thinks they make pretty good eating, too. :}
 
catfishrod69

catfishrod69

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well the leatherbacks im referring to are actually softshell turtles, but we call them leatherbacks...and the snapper i pulled through the ice wasnt hibernating, he was moving around...and im not a complete idiotic hillbilly, i know what im doing....and yes i respent the land, and all the living things, i would rater be in the middle of the woods by myself, than near any people




LordRaiden said:
Contradicting ourselves now, are we?

I'm fortunate enough to have befriended one of the best field herpetologists in Oregon, and he brought an adult female Chelydra Serpentina to show to me and a few others. It was fairly docile, but frightened by the number of people that were standing around it.

He showed us how to pick them up properly, without harming the turtle and without getting our fingers torn off. It went fine, and I wasn't scared in the slightest. The turtle did strike the plastic container it was brought in (a huge rubbermaid bin), but I was more awed than frightened.

I'm sorry, but I really don't have much respect for these kinds of fears. Snapping turtles will only bite defensively out of the water, and will otherwise swim away from things that they deem threatening. Irrational fears about how dangerous an animal might be are based in such things as heresay and reality television and only serve to breed misunderstanding and stupidity.

They need to stamped out; they are archaic and ignorant, and belong in the past, not the present.

EDIT:



Rednecks are discriminated against in the herpetological community because they don't bother to respect the land and animals that they interact with.

For example, your "leatherback". For starters, the turtle you are referring to is most likely the aforementioned Snakehead Snapper, Chelydra Serpentina, and not a Leatherback, which is a strictly marine species.

Also, Aquatic turtles breathe using a special bellows-like structure in their neck, and holding the neck is a great way to suffocate or at least greatly stress a snapping turtle far more than it needs to be. In reality, the best way to pick up a Snakehead snapper is to grasp the keels of the shell to the left and right of the tail on both sides (above their legs) and then lift them up from that point. The tail is also a dangerous way to do it. The tail houses a portion of the animal's vertebrae, and pulling on the tail therefore also means that you are pulling on its backbone.

Finally, if it was wintertime and you broke through ice to remove a turtle from a creekbed, you may have just interrupted a turtle in the midst of hibernating, which is a great way to make them sick or kill them by exposing them to the cold air, which will always be colder than the water under the ice, which is where many aquatic turtles hibernate for that exact reason.
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B

BQC123

Arachnobaron
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I have spent many years dealing with common snapping turtles. I move them across the roads when I catch them crossing. I remove and relocate them from ponds where they are unwanted. We salvage eggs that are laid in bad locations and sure to be destroyed, and even remove eggs from roadkills. These are incubated, and released at the location where they were found. I used to trap and eat a few as well. Delicious by the way.
On land they can be very defensive. I have never encountered this in the water. I catch them while canoeing, and swimming. Never had one try to bite except when removed from the water. The only worry I would have is dangling a foot in the water from my canoe. I have seen them come up to investigate stuff hung over the side, and I'm sure they could mistake it for food. I hear horror stories about them biting swimmers, but have never found a single case of this.
The softshells can be a challenge though. Grabbing by the rear legs works best for those, as well as snappers. They ar just a lot harder to get a grip on.
 
L

LeilaNami

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LordRaiden said:
Contradicting ourselves now, are we?

I'm fortunate enough to have befriended one of the best field herpetologists in Oregon, and he brought an adult female Chelydra Serpentina to show to me and a few others. It was fairly docile, but frightened by the number of people that were standing around it.

He showed us how to pick them up properly, without harming the turtle and without getting our fingers torn off. It went fine, and I wasn't scared in the slightest. The turtle did strike the plastic container it was brought in (a huge rubbermaid bin), but I was more awed than frightened.

I'm sorry, but I really don't have much respect for these kinds of fears. Snapping turtles will only bite defensively out of the water, and will otherwise swim away from things that they deem threatening. Irrational fears about how dangerous an animal might be are based in such things as heresay and reality television and only serve to breed misunderstanding and stupidity.

They need to stamped out; they are archaic and ignorant, and belong in the past, not the present.

EDIT:



Rednecks are discriminated against in the herpetological community because they don't bother to respect the land and animals that they interact with.

For example, your "leatherback". For starters, the turtle you are referring to is most likely the aforementioned Snakehead Snapper, Chelydra Serpentina, and not a Leatherback, which is a strictly marine species.

Also, Aquatic turtles breathe using a special bellows-like structure in their neck, and holding the neck is a great way to suffocate or at least greatly stress a snapping turtle far more than it needs to be. In reality, the best way to pick up a Snakehead snapper is to grasp the keels of the shell to the left and right of the tail on both sides (above their legs) and then lift them up from that point. The tail is also a dangerous way to do it. The tail houses a portion of the animal's vertebrae, and pulling on the tail therefore also means that you are pulling on its backbone.

Finally, if it was wintertime and you broke through ice to remove a turtle from a creekbed, you may have just interrupted a turtle in the midst of hibernating, which is a great way to make them sick or kill them by exposing them to the cold air, which will always be colder than the water under the ice, which is where many aquatic turtles hibernate for that exact reason.
Click to expand...
Exactly how many rednecks, or what you think are rednecks, have you met or did you just formulate that opinion from the stereotype you see on TV? :? Being in Texas, I know several, and the majority of them respect the land. It's the city people trying to be farm boys that go around destroying the ecosystem. Funny thing is, only northerners think 'redneck' is an insult. ;)

As far as snappers go, I've only had the pleasure of dealing with common snappers here. They are content to laze about in the water rather than chasing you onto shore. Of course, if you disturb them, intentionally or not, is when you might get the feisty attitude people seem to fear. Defensive turtles aren't anymore dangerous than another defensive exotic with a mouth full of teeth. It's funny how people who are willing to deal with big varanids or caimans will be the same people nervous about a snapper.
 
S

SandDeku

Arachnobaron
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LeilaNami said:
Exactly how many rednecks, or what you think are rednecks, have you met or did you just formulate that opinion from the stereotype you see on TV? :? Being in Texas, I know several, and the majority of them respect the land. It's the city people trying to be farm boys that go around destroying the ecosystem. Funny thing is, only northerners think 'redneck' is an insult. ;)

As far as snappers go, I've only had the pleasure of dealing with common snappers here. They are content to laze about in the water rather than chasing you onto shore. Of course, if you disturb them, intentionally or not, is when you might get the feisty attitude people seem to fear. Defensive turtles aren't anymore dangerous than another defensive exotic with a mouth full of teeth. It's funny how people who are willing to deal with big varanids or caimans will be the same people nervous about a snapper.
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LOL i know right? I gotta' admit it, I'm a big woose even a pansy! I'm afraid basically of everything but DEFINITELY NOT a snapping turtle! LOL!
 
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