If you’ve owned turtles for a while you’ll know that these animals aren’t the most agile of animals, but this doesn’t mean that these animals can’t move about and eventually get lost.
If your pet turtle was spending time in the yard, and it got lost, you’d understandably be worried. This article looks into why this happens.
Table of Contents
How to find a lost turtle in the yard:
If your pet turtle wandered off you’d understandably start to worry and search, thankfully this article will help you figure out where your pet likely wandered off to.
Stay calm:
The first thing that you’d need to do in this situation is to stay calm, it’s understandable that you’d feel anxious in this situation but staying calm is crucial.
If you start panicking the panicking may start to hinder your ability to think clearly and take steps to find your pet.
Check water sources:
Hiding in water sources is normal and natural for turtles, they enjoy their water and will gravitate toward water sources when allowed to.
Check greenery:
The place where you may find your lost turtle is in some greenery, these animals are known to hide in vegetation, under bushes, or even in tall grass.
Looking in, under, and around these areas will help with your search. The animals can burrow and hide so comb the grass well when looking for your turtle.
Look in structures:
Your pet may have wandered off and may be hiding under a structure and somewhere dark, whether it’s the middle of the day or the dead of night you likely need a flashlight to find a pet turtle who is hiding under decks, sheds, and other structures.
Look outside your yard:
Turtles love to explore, and they are great climbers so, they may have wandered out of your yard and made their way elsewhere like your neighbor’s yard, other parts of the neighborhood, or green spaces in the area.
If you can’t find your pet in the above places then you may find it elsewhere.
Get it to come to you:
Your yard likely doesn’t have all the comforts that your pet’s enclosure has so your pet will go looking for food sometimes, you can use this to your advantage
Leave out some fresh food and water somewhere in your yard where you can keep an eye on it.
The reptile will get hungry and make its way to the food and you can put it back in its enclosure once it does this
Look at different times of the day and night:
You know your turtle and you likely know what times the animal will be most active and the times that they are the least active.
Most turtles are more active in the morning and in the evening so looking during these times may help you find the animal easier.
Be patient:
Not only are turtles slow to move they like to stay still and stay in the same place for long periods of time, so, if your pet isn’t coming to the food and water that you’ve left out for them, then you may have to just wait it out to see if the animal comes back
If you enjoyed this article then you may also be interested in other turtle/tortoise related articles. Here are some articles that you may be interested in: My Turtle Keeps Splashing, What Happens If You Drop A Baby Turtle, Turtle Hasn’t Eaten In A Week, My Turtle Escaped His Tank, My Turtle Hasn’t Eaten In Months, Why Is My Turtle Floating Upside Down, Turtle Hiccups, Can I Put My Turtle In The Sun?, Why Is My Turtle Bleeding From Tail?