Dear Members and Friends:

Our Spring meeting will be held on Saturday, April 23rd at the Belle Cooledge Library (corner of South Land Park and Fruitridge Road) from 1:30 until 4. Our guest speaker will be fellow club member, Michael Rajkumar. Michael is going to give a presentation on the importance of proper diet in captivity and also explain the significance of some of the common greens. He would also like to cover the importance of humidity in the enclosure for young hatchlings and also proper hydration. In addition, Michael would also like to cover the problem with commercial turtle/tortoise foods, even the ones with low protein content. It sounds like we are going to have a very informative meeting.

I would like to thank Richard Spekner for coming to our winter meeting and giving a fine presentation. It was wonderful to see healthy turtles in the middle of winter and listen to Richard's animated discussion of the different species. THANK YOU RICHARD!!

We can talk about any number of topics as time permits at the meeting, so please bring your questions. And don't forget to have your incubators ready because eggs can be laid at any time now. Quality raffle items (turtle related, of course) are always needed and many thanks to Robin Kaneshiro once again for her wonderful donation of assorted sale and raffle items. It is so appreciated!!

SEE YOU ALL AT THE MEETING. IT'S OUR 24TH YEAR!!

Turtle Chat: The winter we had was a bit hard on our pets because the temperatures never got cold enough for true hibernation. The box and water turtles all came through with flying colors, however, several Russian tortoises who were outside did not survive. A lot of Russians had been turned over to The Bunker. I call these the Petco Russians since this is where they came from. People bought them not realizing the care that was required. The ones I put into the Greenhouse in the fall did very well. Many times a turtle or tortoise will seem to have survived hibernation only to perish when the temperature goes up. I believe this happens when they are so weak and no longer have any reserves to fall back on. They were not really hibernating this winter - they were using up their energy.

Sacramento winters are so changeable. Some years it is perfectly safe for the Russians to hibernate outdoors, but other years are deadly and even Fat Betty cannot accurately predict the weather. A lot of mine go underground before I can catch them and they usually are ok, but once in awhile, there is trouble. And I hate when that happens. Considering the phone calls I am receiving, quite a few of your pets did not survive what was considered to be a mild winter. A colder winter would have been much better for them. Let's try to learn what we can from this.

It is now time to clean up the yard, get rid of the debris, mend the fences, plant some seeds and watch out for predators. Sometimes I think it is better to keep our turtles indoors considering the dangers outside. Raccoons, opossums and rats are always a threat. When I take the Leopard tortoises out of the Greenhouse for the spring and summer I often ask myself, "What am I doing??" I worry less in winter. They are safer.

Marilyn, a male Greek tortoise, has joined Just Jim Jr. And his friends and considering Marilyn's not unexpected weird behavior, I have appropriately gave him the last name of Manson. He arrived 'sick' with several syringes full of antibiotics for me to administer. I never saw the runny nose he was supposed to have and let him join the others since he was a captive to begin with. After being released into the habitat, he immediately began chasing the female Greeks and was about to claim one as his own when Hercules, a larger male Greek, stepped in and pushed him off. Most often these last weeks tho, the scene I observe is the female Greek traveling quickly across the yard with Marilyn Manson right behind her and Hercules bringing up the rear.

It's good to see this normal activity after the incredibly long winter for the Greenhouse residents. During the wet and foggy month of January, Blondie decided it was time to lay some more eggs. She would walk off of the heat mat and start digging in the cold dirt and then get chilled and sit in one place until I went out and put her back onto the pad. Did I ever tell you that I found a baby Leopard in the Greenhouse last fall? It must have come from an egg I missed digging up and I have no idea how it survived among the large leopard's activities and major BM's. But survive it did. What's very interesting is the color of its shell. Instead of being the normal Leopard black and white, it is the color of the dirt, sort of a sandy brown, like a Sulcata hatchling. Mother Nature disguised the hatchling to match the substrate in the Greenhouse.

It finally happened. A tortoise escaped from The Bunker. It was seen heading towards the neighbor's swimming pool. The only problem is: how did it get there? I see no holes under the fence and it didn't climb over and I'm thinking, maybe it isn't mine? In light of this, is anyone willing to help secure my yard? I think the back fence needs a good going over.

A small red eared slider was presented to me with a huge lump on her neck. Ordinarily I do not lance these lumps because I don't want to be bitten. The family had no extra money for a vet, so I was it. I had a feeling a vet would have anesthetized the turtle, possibly killing it, in order to get at the lump. I made the decision to try and did not promise any miracles. It took 2 days for me to gather my courage and one night, at midnight, while the turtle was fast asleep, I laid out my instruments. I knew I had to work fast. I knew I would only have one chance. I grabbed the turtle and swiftly lanced the lump without cutting off my own finger and got out as much gunk as possible. The head shot in, never to be seen again until morning! I never did get another chance and sent the turtle home with instructions to bring her back should the lump get really big again.

Lots of times, water turtle neck lumps are unsightly, but don't present any problem unless the turtle has trouble eating. The Bunker is busy now, everyone is awake and ready for another season of eating, mating, eating, mating and eating and mating.

Give your pets a general checkup when they come out of hibernation. Watch the way they walk. They should not be limping or dragging themselves along the ground. The eyes should be wide open and bright and shiny and not sunken in. The weight should be adequate for the size. If you pick up a box turtle and it feels hollow, you know it is dehydrated and needs extra attention. Are the nostrils clear? Sometimes wetness clears up after a nice long soak. Is the turtle hungry? They usually don't eat until the temperatures are in the 70's. Check for skin conditions. If it looks and smells bad, it usually is! A white looking ring around the eyes usually means the turtle or tortoise could use a warm soak. I do hope all of your troubles are minimal. Don't let things get out of hand. Happy Spring!