Runester

I named him “West Boylston Bob” because that is the town near where he was found. This poor guy needs your help!

So, something interesting happened to me on the way to work today, and I’m asking those that read this BLOG to help a little.

First, I work second shift, so I left in the afternoon to pick up some lunch before trekking into the NOC (Network Operations Center). Instead of driving down route 140 to my favourite sub shop, I was distracted and drove down route 70. When I realized I was going in the wrong direction, I turned around and began heading back. It was heading back along route 70 that I saw a huge turtle crawl off the left side of the road, into the trees. I always carry a little digital camera with me, so I decided to pull over and snap a few photo’s for my BLOG (lucky you).

I wasn’t the only car to see the turtle, I noted two others had already pulled over, their drivers out and standing along side the road staring at something. I assumed they were fellow nature lovers, stopped to see the turtle. But, when I approached, I noticed their countenance was off, something was wrong – the turtle had been hit by a car and seriously injured.

Now, the road there is a windey path, with a 35 MPH speed limit, and passes right in front of a police station. The weather is perfect with a brightly lit sky and no moisture at all. And, the turtle is quite large and easy to spot (the three of us had seen it as it crawled off the road). Why hadn’t the driver that hit it, seen it in time to stop, swerve, or drive around? I don’t know, but I strongly suspect they were speeding and came around the bend going to fast to drive safely.

Anyway, the three of us determined that we needed to do something – so we all got on our mobile phones. She called a friend, he called his daughter, and I called my vet. All of us heard the same thing, take the turtle to Tufts Wildlife Clinic. He volunteered to drive it, but we needed something to put it in. She volunteered to provide the containers, as she lived nearby. So she drove off to find some boxes and he and I waited with the turtle. I had time to photograph the blood on the road, and noted that the first blood spot was near the center of the road – the double yellow lines. [It was a little like being an animal CSI, photographing a crime scene.]

Image One – The bloody trail left on the pavement as West Boylston Bob crawled out of traffic.

Image Two – West Boylston Bob resting near the base of a tree, seeking shelter and probably in shock from his injuries. Note: the severe damage to his shell.

Image Three – A close-up of his damaged shell.

Image Four – Another close-up, note the blood stain on his side. He was wounded on his underside as well, we could not see the damage directly (without turning him over, which we weren’t going to do), but the blood shows that it was serious.

When she got back, he and I began working on getting the turtle into a shallow box. This wasn’t easy, the turle would snap viciously whenever we tried to move or lift it. Finally, after getting it turned in the right direction, I was able to get behind the turtle and and sort of boost it over the lip of the box. After that, it was easy to reorient it safely, and then we through another box over it’s head to keep it’s snapping beak from removing anyones flesh!

We loaded the turtle (in it’s new box-carrier) into the front seat of his car and I followed him all the way to Tufts Wildlife Clinic. It turns out that this is the second injured snapping turtle they had seen today. They will care for the animal, free of charge, and ask only for donations to help them do their work. They even gave us a Accession Number so that we could call back and get a status on the injured animal.

Now, for my plea – if you are able, please donate a little (or a lot) to the Tufts Wildlife Clinic. It’s a good cause, you’ll be helping “West Boylston Bob” and many others as well. The pamphlet they gave us suggests that the x-ray, blood work, and shell repair could cost them upwards of $188. Any help you could give would make me very grateful, and would help them a lot. Thanks!

Tufts Wildlife Clinic
200 Westboro Road, North Grafton, MA 01536
508-839-7918

“West Boylston Bob”
Accession Number: 05-00528
Species: Snapping Turtle, Admitted: 5-June-2005

There are several ways to make a gift to Tufts, including online giving.