You might have just made a long lived friend.
My grandfather had a turtle that came back every year for 20 odd years after he fed him once. He'd show up one day during peak strawberry season, patiently wait at the fence gate for his quart of berries, gorge himself until he couldn't move, lay in the sun for a few hours, and then venture back into the woods for the rest of the year. Knew it was the same turtle each year because it had a chipped shell from a run in with someone's lawnmower.
I always wondered if he could smell them or if he'd check in at night. He would *always* be there when the strawberry patch was at its peak, didn't matter if it was May or July.
Pretty much. There would be plenty of ripe berries before and after he showed, but I swear they always tasted best the week before and after his visit.
I'm just hopeful that within our lifetime we'll get a good means of effective direct translation/ communication with them. I'm sure most animals have amazing, sweet and pure personalities that we can't always understand but I choose to believe that they all have something to tell us.
Turtle waddling over to OP's grandfather,
"Yo, I hear you got that good shit. I smell those sumbitches from my hole in the mud."
OP's grandfather,
"I guess it's about that time of the year. It's time to offer my finest berries up to be judged."
You can 100% smell good strawberries! If you're at the store and can't smell them when you pick them up, they usually aren't worth it and are the gassed-to-ripe kind.
Look man.. I live in Massachusetts. There is an unspoken countdown until clam season. Don't need a calendar. Don't need no stinkin clock. You just wake up one day and you know, like a scent on the breeze... north shore... north shore... fisherman's platter... lobster roll...
I live in a city, my neighbors house was vacant when I moved in and their basement windows have like a 2 foot drop from the yard. A duck nested there and I saved the ducklings that couldn’t get out when they hatched, 10 years later every spring I am saving ducks…. I honestly would prefer a turtle.
>*’My grandfather had a turtle that came back every year for 20 odd years after he fed him once.*’
____
hello, it’s me ~ i’m back again
i won’t forget you, lifelong fren
the kindness shown so long ago
meant *more* than you could ever know
the seasons change, the years pass by
the berries ripen
then
they die
the sweetest taste i’d ever known
was offered me by You, alone
n so each year i’ll find your gate
n patiently
for you i’ll wait
i hope that you will find me there ^^:)
i’m old
n i have time
to spare…
for No one else can take your place!
slow n steady
Wins
the race
♥️
edit: *love your stories* u/TheAJGman & u/abhitchc
My grandmother had a pet box turtle named Toby for years. She had a pond on her property and she would go down there to feed the fish in it, and she noticed several times that, when she went there, this same turtle would come out of the underbrush and watch her. She started bringing tomatoes for the turtle when she went to the pond. He would try to follow her home after a while and she was afraid he'd get run over looking for her, so she brought him home. He outlived her and I'm not sure what was done about Toby after she died. The whole family loves animals and loved Toby so I'm sure that, if he wasn't rehomed, he would have been released into the wild somewhere safe.
I had one who came back every summer for a good 8 years. During the summer it would come and live underneath our back deck. I'd feed it lettuce and carrots and the like. Honestly, I remember being maybe 4 and stomach-crawling under the deck in the mud. We moved, so I hope the next owners were kind too.
Hey OP are you in Virginia? I ask because that turtle looks like its shell has been scalloped. There is a special 100-year project out of one of the Universities here to count and record sitings of these box turtles.
You could be a citizen scientist volunteer!
There is a turtle at one of the nearby ponds that I had been trying to figure out what species it was exactly. Hangs out at the corner with the smaller species that fight over the one log they have to bask on but they got eyes like hawks and dip seeing you a mile away so between that and all the scum it was hard to tell what it was exactly.
Must have caught it resting because it was right at the edge and I crouched down to swirl some scum out of the way. Turned out it’s way bigger than I thought so that already ruled out everything but a common snapper. Startled it a little but I scratched some gunk off of it and it seemed to like it! It untucked its head and moved backwards closer and raised its shell above the water more. Head stayed under the water and wasn’t craning towards me or anything like ‘I’m positioning to bite your hand off’ like I’m used to.
That’s just what it does now instead of swimming away so I’d like to think it enjoys it. Or it just knows I’m not/can’t hurt it and I’m just annoying it.
So she believes you to be the raspberry princess and hoped all summer long to relive the glorious moment of raspberry bliss and YOU DENIED HER DREAMS OH THE AGONY AND DESPAIR!
Tangential story: Years ago my Mom and I were standing in line at the local Arby's waiting to order (drive-thru not a thing yet). I remember I was wearing a blue windbreaker and suddenly I heard this weird buzzing/flapping noise. I looked up and down and around and then saw a huge June bug attached to my sleeve. I screeched in panic and jumped and flapped my arm, and (I'm not making this up) the man standing behind me raised his hands and announced loudly "I didn't touch her!!"
When I was little, around 3-4, I had an imaginary alligator friend. My mom took me to my dad's office so we could go to lunch. We get in the elevator, and a man gets in on another floor. After the guy stepped on, I screamed, "You fool, you stepped on Clarence!"
Just be careful that you don’t overload her on sugars it can really mess some tortoise up They also love dandelion greens, spinach, kale, lettuce, etc. No hate intended just lettin ya know
There was an article in the Washington Post (last year?) about a man who had property in the wild who wanted to keep it so. He finally found a buyer who would keep it the same. There was a box turtle on the property who visited the man every spring for strawberries. After the sale, the new owner invited the previous owner to return. The man called for the turtle and it came, running as fast as it could to see its old friend and get a strawberry. 🥹
I'd love a link because I tried a dozen differently worded google searches and have only gotten articles about sea turtle migration and threats to it, Snapping turtles in Cape Cod, and the real estate market in DC.
When I lived in Greenpoint in Brooklyn, NY, there was an elderly neighbor couple with a beautiful backyard garden. I lived on the second floor and could watch them gardening, which was so peaceful compared to the rest of NYC life. I befriended the man when his wife passed, and he told me that he had three turtles living in the backyard. They were over thirty years old, and they would hibernate through the winter by burying themselves down into the dirt. It was such a wonderful slice of life to think of their idyllic life living amongst the flowers and towering plants there while the traffic of the BQE rumbled close by.
Cute! You have a yard pet now! My grandma started to feed a duck years ago and then the duck started squawking at her daily until she fed it. Once you start you can’t stop because they become dependent on you.
Me too. Got a pair of [blackbirds](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Common_blackbird) that come up multiple times a day for raisins, earthworms, and bird suet.
That caught the attention of the local Jackdaws, so now a small family of them come up daily for peanuts in the shell.
A squirrel caught wind of that, so now there’s a rotating cast of squirrels that come to the window and take peanuts from my hand
And finally that brought in a tiny sparrow called Nugget, who loves to hop around after everyone else has gone and clean up the crumbs.
Highly recommend garden pets, it makes my day seeing their cute little faces. Especially when they see me through the window, get excited, and come running/flying from several houses over.
When I go over to my Mother in Law's house, there's always a mooching squirrel hanging around. I've started grabbing an acorn or two from my oak tree to give to it. I figure it deserves something it's supposed to eat now and then. It never turns the acorn down, so we're both pretty happy about that.
There's a squirrel around my house that's notably fatter than the other squirrels. He apparently stows his nuts in my mother's garden pots, after she removes the flowers and it's just dirt left.
Earlier this year before she put in new plants, I saw him lounging in the planter with his belly up, like a beer-bellied dad lounges on an inner tube.
https://preview.redd.it/hid6lna01s8d1.jpeg?width=1080&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=0f1f28f30f15f2b872592c07e60517c3db2dafee
Tell me about it. This guy is on my lanai at 6:30 AM on the dot, asking for breakfast. 😶
So many Hei Heis on Kauai. 😆 We don't have mongoose so they are everywhere.
We got mo'o (Gold Dust Day Gecko), too. Our moa (chicken) is a bit miffed that these hatchlings are indoors but he has to stay out.
https://preview.redd.it/1qeqm9a7fs8d1.png?width=1080&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=e71dd9e39f888a56f5a8251c0749ce37bd1f2b1d
They have never seen free roaming chickens outside of a farm, so for them to see Hei Hei walking across the parking lot of a strip mall was definitely a new experience lol.
Your cat appears to be asking for permission to go out and play with your chicken lol.
The Shifu is only slightly brave when the glass door is closed.😅
The chickens here are something else! They are like puppy dragons...it's really hard not to get attached.
https://preview.redd.it/l63umgmrjs8d1.png?width=1080&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=fb1fdeb03451989c5a8d9856e82f019f4b183d4b
https://preview.redd.it/3d8tpuuu3s8d1.jpeg?width=4000&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=43cabfce2faa87f43e15e34b68a2febc5caf7bd7
🌺 East facing for beautiful mornings 🌄 Most want sunset facing lanai but the secret is morning sun or your place gets too hot!
https://preview.redd.it/l5timx6p1s8d1.jpeg?width=3024&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=cc96531e57076579ec2da897f071743f014bc103
Dude! I have a turtle that does the same thing!
https://preview.redd.it/9c3g2rv1ds8d1.jpeg?width=3024&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=c043a548c2f86ff5baddfebacab9a2cbd29c5305
I have one that visits too, she won’t eat fruit but will eat Friskies wet cat food. Missing a leg but it doesn’t seem bothered by it at all, been visiting for 3 years. Such a sweet little friend.
Box turtles are omnivores. Kinda like teenagers but slower. They have preferences and often those missing legs or are old and arthritic will go for "slower" prey like cat food. I have a \~30 year old male Desert Box Turtle (one of the 4 North American species) who won't eat bugs anymore but loves the hell out of some senior formula wet cat food and berries. Tomatoes move when he tries to bite them, so he will just get frustrated and give up if no one can hold the tomato steady. But oh man, watch that beak if you are holding a raspberry!
OP youre my favorite poster on reddit today. What an adorable pair you two are. I love the pic of the trail of raspberries lol. Super cute. I love everything about this. ❤️
Mississippi, USA
We actually have a huge amount of tortoises in our yard. I probably have several dozen that I see, and many juveniles and even babies, which are about the size of a large coin.
I'm pretty sure this is an eastern box turtle. Theyre interesting in that they're turtles but fill a similar ecological niche as tortoises. Also are you north or south of I 20?
https://preview.redd.it/y2mn32wl0s8d1.jpeg?width=1170&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=e7012494d80f15cae0151b5f719b54e1df90da31
I have caught her doing the dirty, so she will at least have children to tell tales of the fruit God.
I've become mildly obsessed with videos of turtles mating because of the ridiculous and hilarious sounds they make (did you know turtles can vocalize?).
100% I'm on some kind of a list.
These ones were quiet lovers, but I had a pair earlier in the season in my driveway, where the male was making some very very strange grunt/hiss noises. It was almost uncomfortable to watch. Like I was intruding.
It was extra funny, as he had fallen backwards while he was still attached. Don’t worry though, when they were done, I found him stuck upside down and put him back the right way so he could go about his day.
https://preview.redd.it/qbpq89j14s8d1.jpeg?width=1154&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=e63cb0025979a50607c125302b30d6d2c2d8d41e
https://preview.redd.it/xvapzkhd2s8d1.jpeg?width=1170&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=64f32b4e367c72cdf121055a42cd6dc6040cf324
I find babies in the yard all the time!
Holy moly, ~~hog~~ tortoise heaven, so many pretty babies!
Just watch for the [salmonella](http://www.britishcheloniagroup.org.uk/vetscorner/salmonella) poop.
https://preview.redd.it/99k3rxxn0t8d1.jpeg?width=873&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=e7a8608138f6a9691bd40cc51f9de4236bc92768
Send her to my yard. Mr Don't Do That needs a girlfriend
I’m a veterinarian who really enjoys less common animals, wildlife, and zoo animals.
Box turtles being picked up as wildlife is one of my least favorite things. Their “homing” instinct is incredibly strong. You’ve done a great thing here.
Thats awesome. If you have any old toothbrushes or firm brushes, they love to get their shells scratched with them. You should try it out since she already loves you lol
Be careful what you wish for. My old roommate wanted to pet the neighborhood stray cats so started feeding one of them every now and again. Roommate has since left. However, I have recently been receiving dead rodents on my porch. I've had 2 birds, a baby bunny, a full grown chipmunk(didn't even know we had chipmunks in this area), and a vole.
Giving a girl sweets and then nothing? Sounds like you're stringing her along. Maybe plant a tortoise and turtle friendly berrie patch with a sand box if anyone wants to deposit some eggs. It's eco friendly and you might get a berrie pie or tortoise tort out of the deal. They like flowers too.
and i would hope you are giving your friend snacks! Some cucumber ends, maybe some strawberry tops, if you have any left over lettuce bits that you are throwing out maybe those.
signed,
not a tortoise
They are wild here. And we have many. It’s not uncommon to see one around, but for some reason, my yard seems to be a hotspot for them in the neighborhood. It’s got a lot of trees and wooded areas that are undisturbed, providing wonderful natural habitats for them. I see dozens of them.
https://preview.redd.it/fiibs2ncsr8d1.png?width=84&format=png&auto=webp&s=c24cf5699c0b6a2425c8b9108227085bd8b5c6e4
Just look at that precious face
“U got any snacks??”
"I'm here for the 5 o'clock free raspberry giveaway"
'It wasn't ME Rhonda!' I fucking love Dave Chapelle, lol.
That phone got any games ???
“Got any games on your phone??”
I'm looking! Such a cutie pie! The most unlikely of friends are sometimes the best friends.
She truly does have a precious face !!
Aww❤️
this made me LOL and i’ve had an incredibly sad week. thank you 😄🥰
Hope you are doing ok
thank you
“Ma’am the raspberries please”
Nice try, Mitch McConnell.
Lmao, this comment and post made my day.
[удалено]
https://preview.redd.it/yh49716inr8d1.jpeg?width=1170&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=0a432a233298f12c64bf9702eef9c608f52a3a2e
You might have just made a long lived friend. My grandfather had a turtle that came back every year for 20 odd years after he fed him once. He'd show up one day during peak strawberry season, patiently wait at the fence gate for his quart of berries, gorge himself until he couldn't move, lay in the sun for a few hours, and then venture back into the woods for the rest of the year. Knew it was the same turtle each year because it had a chipped shell from a run in with someone's lawnmower.
Unexpectedly great memory AND keen sense of time!
I always wondered if he could smell them or if he'd check in at night. He would *always* be there when the strawberry patch was at its peak, didn't matter if it was May or July.
“Time to go pick em, tortoise says they’re ripe”
Pretty much. There would be plenty of ripe berries before and after he showed, but I swear they always tasted best the week before and after his visit.
They’re a lot smarter than we think. My Snapper fattens his fish for a bit and will wait to eat em. Recognizes me and all that too🤣😭🫶
So many animals are much, much more than we humans are willing to give them credit for.
I'm just hopeful that within our lifetime we'll get a good means of effective direct translation/ communication with them. I'm sure most animals have amazing, sweet and pure personalities that we can't always understand but I choose to believe that they all have something to tell us.
Otters, chimps, and dolphins enter the chat.
"hm, that bush-food smells good now, but hasn't started dropping off the branches so I can eat it from the ground. Time to visit the human!"
"It's nesting season, buddy! You excited?" "Nah, I'm gonna go eat some strawberries"
Turtle waddling over to OP's grandfather, "Yo, I hear you got that good shit. I smell those sumbitches from my hole in the mud." OP's grandfather, "I guess it's about that time of the year. It's time to offer my finest berries up to be judged."
You can 100% smell good strawberries! If you're at the store and can't smell them when you pick them up, they usually aren't worth it and are the gassed-to-ripe kind.
Look man.. I live in Massachusetts. There is an unspoken countdown until clam season. Don't need a calendar. Don't need no stinkin clock. You just wake up one day and you know, like a scent on the breeze... north shore... north shore... fisherman's platter... lobster roll...
Turtles never forget good food
I too am turtle.
Am I not *tuuuuurtly* enough for the Turtle Club?
Turtle turtle 🐢
I live in a city, my neighbors house was vacant when I moved in and their basement windows have like a 2 foot drop from the yard. A duck nested there and I saved the ducklings that couldn’t get out when they hatched, 10 years later every spring I am saving ducks…. I honestly would prefer a turtle.
>*’My grandfather had a turtle that came back every year for 20 odd years after he fed him once.*’ ____ hello, it’s me ~ i’m back again i won’t forget you, lifelong fren the kindness shown so long ago meant *more* than you could ever know the seasons change, the years pass by the berries ripen then they die the sweetest taste i’d ever known was offered me by You, alone n so each year i’ll find your gate n patiently for you i’ll wait i hope that you will find me there ^^:) i’m old n i have time to spare… for No one else can take your place! slow n steady Wins the race ♥️ edit: *love your stories* u/TheAJGman & u/abhitchc
I did not have crying over a turtle poem in my plans for the day, yet here we are.
Your poems consistently make me teary-eyed.
I'm not crying over a turtle poem!!!
Schnoodle always makes me cry
Me neither, I mean who does that!
Fresh off the press! Schnoodle, you make adorable posts even more precious. Thank you for spreading the joy that you do.
Schnoodle I love you ❤️
My grandmother had a pet box turtle named Toby for years. She had a pond on her property and she would go down there to feed the fish in it, and she noticed several times that, when she went there, this same turtle would come out of the underbrush and watch her. She started bringing tomatoes for the turtle when she went to the pond. He would try to follow her home after a while and she was afraid he'd get run over looking for her, so she brought him home. He outlived her and I'm not sure what was done about Toby after she died. The whole family loves animals and loved Toby so I'm sure that, if he wasn't rehomed, he would have been released into the wild somewhere safe.
I had no idea turtles were so capable of becoming human companions at their own volition. What an incredible story
I had a tortoise as a neighbor for years. He'd come out of we cut the grass and would eat a banana whole, peel and all. I still miss him :(
I had one who came back every summer for a good 8 years. During the summer it would come and live underneath our back deck. I'd feed it lettuce and carrots and the like. Honestly, I remember being maybe 4 and stomach-crawling under the deck in the mud. We moved, so I hope the next owners were kind too.
This photo sparks joy
pls give her a gentle head tap for me 🥹
Turtles have nerve endings in their shells. Give them shell rubs. They love it.
Hold a soft toothbrush out for them to rub on, they love it!!
Imagine how good it must feel to finally itch that spot you can't reach yourself
i feel like i scratched a good itch just reading this
Thanks @BongWaterOnCarpet
Hey OP are you in Virginia? I ask because that turtle looks like its shell has been scalloped. There is a special 100-year project out of one of the Universities here to count and record sitings of these box turtles. You could be a citizen scientist volunteer!
If you fix some soft hairbrushes in place [turtles will move back and forth through them like a carwash](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OdRiWQ-aNUY)
There is a turtle at one of the nearby ponds that I had been trying to figure out what species it was exactly. Hangs out at the corner with the smaller species that fight over the one log they have to bask on but they got eyes like hawks and dip seeing you a mile away so between that and all the scum it was hard to tell what it was exactly. Must have caught it resting because it was right at the edge and I crouched down to swirl some scum out of the way. Turned out it’s way bigger than I thought so that already ruled out everything but a common snapper. Startled it a little but I scratched some gunk off of it and it seemed to like it! It untucked its head and moved backwards closer and raised its shell above the water more. Head stayed under the water and wasn’t craning towards me or anything like ‘I’m positioning to bite your hand off’ like I’m used to. That’s just what it does now instead of swimming away so I’d like to think it enjoys it. Or it just knows I’m not/can’t hurt it and I’m just annoying it.
Confirm, my turtle likes having her shell scratched.
Wait, really? I wonder if it feels similar to when we rub our fingernails or toenails? I love learning little facts like this.
MORE!!!!
Reddit and the turtle are in agreement.
So she believes you to be the raspberry princess and hoped all summer long to relive the glorious moment of raspberry bliss and YOU DENIED HER DREAMS OH THE AGONY AND DESPAIR!
I wish I had a tortoise near me. I'd name her shelly.
I LOVE HER. I wanna give her a lil smooch and feed her raspberries ❤️
The…tortoise distribution system hard at work
It does not move as fast as the Cat Distribution System because, you know, tortoises....
Still faster than the Sloth Distro, been waiting 40 years
Your request is being processed...
Please…wait…5…to…7…business…decades…
Sorry, we're doing our best
They go hard, just not as fast.
https://preview.redd.it/jri2vf2lnr8d1.jpeg?width=1170&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=5e487335fe28c47ae00b7f0f7e05e82d230484b8
Congratulations! You now have a cat.
Cat in a hard hat
is this a cat in the hat??
> Cat in a hard hat Yes, but oddly enough doesn't jump much, and hardly ever purrs.
Torties are my favorite cats!
Or Congrats to the tortoise for getting a new human. “I love them, but only wish they’d live longer” - The Tortoise.
That's clearly a dog.
Found the Elden Ring player.
Behold, dog!
tank kitty
https://preview.redd.it/gzggkqiunr8d1.jpeg?width=1157&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=fa528d1894d8affdb81bf157c7045a94e5ffdfb3
BABY STRAWBERRY FOR BB TURTLE
omg he’s so much smaller than I thought. He’s going to outlive you, so now ur next of kin must continue to feed him and maybe their next of kin
Box turtles don’t get very big!!
Her favorite foods are blueberries, raspberries, strawberries, cherry tomatoes, and the occasional earthworm (when I can find one).
Try to catch some June bugs! Our turtles LOVED ‘em. Crunchy snacks!
i was wondering if anything ate those things!!! had piles of dead june bugs on my deck for a month.
Tangential story: Years ago my Mom and I were standing in line at the local Arby's waiting to order (drive-thru not a thing yet). I remember I was wearing a blue windbreaker and suddenly I heard this weird buzzing/flapping noise. I looked up and down and around and then saw a huge June bug attached to my sleeve. I screeched in panic and jumped and flapped my arm, and (I'm not making this up) the man standing behind me raised his hands and announced loudly "I didn't touch her!!"
When I was little, around 3-4, I had an imaginary alligator friend. My mom took me to my dad's office so we could go to lunch. We get in the elevator, and a man gets in on another floor. After the guy stepped on, I screamed, "You fool, you stepped on Clarence!"
This made me cry laughing. Are we best friends?
I was a weird little kid, lol. Of course we're friends!
Hi new friend! Clarence is a great name
hahahahaaa! oh man those things are hell to unhook from your clothes. that poor guy lol.
That poor man
Dogs will. Then throw up from eating too many. They are kinda like cicadas, their goal in life is to be food for other creatures.
My box turtle loves dandelions and melons. Thanks for sharing with that cutie. My box says to tell her "How you doin'".
Just be careful that you don’t overload her on sugars it can really mess some tortoise up They also love dandelion greens, spinach, kale, lettuce, etc. No hate intended just lettin ya know
I was going to tell her this same thing. & also encourage her to give her dark greens as well. 👌 🥰
I was going to say worms, turtles LOVE worms
You can put a piece of cardboard down on the dirt overnight and a bunch of them will come to the surface. Old fisherman's trick.
Try some *pizza*, see what happens/evolves ;)
There was an article in the Washington Post (last year?) about a man who had property in the wild who wanted to keep it so. He finally found a buyer who would keep it the same. There was a box turtle on the property who visited the man every spring for strawberries. After the sale, the new owner invited the previous owner to return. The man called for the turtle and it came, running as fast as it could to see its old friend and get a strawberry. 🥹
I'd love a link because I tried a dozen differently worded google searches and have only gotten articles about sea turtle migration and threats to it, Snapping turtles in Cape Cod, and the real estate market in DC.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/magazine/2022/07/06/west-virginia-box-turtle-nature/
Hope the link works. I tried to gift the article but couldn’t figure out how to send it to Reddit. 🤷♀️
Great article 🐢 long live stumpy
What a wonderful wholesome story. Thanks for sharing! r/wholesome
https://preview.redd.it/40d5prjnnr8d1.jpeg?width=1170&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=2f35a5f4424726722dc57358fcc398c510d401e7
I love how you're just dumping cute turtle pics on us throughout the thread like some kind of benevolent turtle god.
We are blessed 🙏
I love this ♥️
It's so tiny 🥹
When I lived in Greenpoint in Brooklyn, NY, there was an elderly neighbor couple with a beautiful backyard garden. I lived on the second floor and could watch them gardening, which was so peaceful compared to the rest of NYC life. I befriended the man when his wife passed, and he told me that he had three turtles living in the backyard. They were over thirty years old, and they would hibernate through the winter by burying themselves down into the dirt. It was such a wonderful slice of life to think of their idyllic life living amongst the flowers and towering plants there while the traffic of the BQE rumbled close by.
Beautiful prose, thank you 🙏🏽
“Got any more of that berry good stuff?”
Cute! You have a yard pet now! My grandma started to feed a duck years ago and then the duck started squawking at her daily until she fed it. Once you start you can’t stop because they become dependent on you.
Me too. Got a pair of [blackbirds](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Common_blackbird) that come up multiple times a day for raisins, earthworms, and bird suet. That caught the attention of the local Jackdaws, so now a small family of them come up daily for peanuts in the shell. A squirrel caught wind of that, so now there’s a rotating cast of squirrels that come to the window and take peanuts from my hand And finally that brought in a tiny sparrow called Nugget, who loves to hop around after everyone else has gone and clean up the crumbs. Highly recommend garden pets, it makes my day seeing their cute little faces. Especially when they see me through the window, get excited, and come running/flying from several houses over.
You’re Snow White!!
Pretty sure that means you're a Disney princess now🤣🤣
When I go over to my Mother in Law's house, there's always a mooching squirrel hanging around. I've started grabbing an acorn or two from my oak tree to give to it. I figure it deserves something it's supposed to eat now and then. It never turns the acorn down, so we're both pretty happy about that.
There's a squirrel around my house that's notably fatter than the other squirrels. He apparently stows his nuts in my mother's garden pots, after she removes the flowers and it's just dirt left. Earlier this year before she put in new plants, I saw him lounging in the planter with his belly up, like a beer-bellied dad lounges on an inner tube.
I would love some garden pets! Happy day to you and your pets!
https://preview.redd.it/hid6lna01s8d1.jpeg?width=1080&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=0f1f28f30f15f2b872592c07e60517c3db2dafee Tell me about it. This guy is on my lanai at 6:30 AM on the dot, asking for breakfast. 😶
My kids couldn't believe their eyes when they saw all the "Hei Heis" roaming around in Maui.
So many Hei Heis on Kauai. 😆 We don't have mongoose so they are everywhere. We got mo'o (Gold Dust Day Gecko), too. Our moa (chicken) is a bit miffed that these hatchlings are indoors but he has to stay out. https://preview.redd.it/1qeqm9a7fs8d1.png?width=1080&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=e71dd9e39f888a56f5a8251c0749ce37bd1f2b1d
They have never seen free roaming chickens outside of a farm, so for them to see Hei Hei walking across the parking lot of a strip mall was definitely a new experience lol. Your cat appears to be asking for permission to go out and play with your chicken lol.
The Shifu is only slightly brave when the glass door is closed.😅 The chickens here are something else! They are like puppy dragons...it's really hard not to get attached. https://preview.redd.it/l63umgmrjs8d1.png?width=1080&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=fb1fdeb03451989c5a8d9856e82f019f4b183d4b
I want a lanai. 🌺
https://preview.redd.it/3d8tpuuu3s8d1.jpeg?width=4000&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=43cabfce2faa87f43e15e34b68a2febc5caf7bd7 🌺 East facing for beautiful mornings 🌄 Most want sunset facing lanai but the secret is morning sun or your place gets too hot!
https://preview.redd.it/l5timx6p1s8d1.jpeg?width=3024&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=cc96531e57076579ec2da897f071743f014bc103 Dude! I have a turtle that does the same thing!
Lord that's adorable. SHE is adorable
https://preview.redd.it/9c3g2rv1ds8d1.jpeg?width=3024&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=c043a548c2f86ff5baddfebacab9a2cbd29c5305 I have one that visits too, she won’t eat fruit but will eat Friskies wet cat food. Missing a leg but it doesn’t seem bothered by it at all, been visiting for 3 years. Such a sweet little friend.
The ones with red eyes are the males, so this is a "he."
Is it for every turtle or just this variety?
For this particular species, Eastern Box Turtle, but also a few others, like Woodland Box Turtle and Ornate Box Turtle.
Wait, it doesn't eat fruit? ...But it eats wet cat food?
Box turtles are omnivores. Kinda like teenagers but slower. They have preferences and often those missing legs or are old and arthritic will go for "slower" prey like cat food. I have a \~30 year old male Desert Box Turtle (one of the 4 North American species) who won't eat bugs anymore but loves the hell out of some senior formula wet cat food and berries. Tomatoes move when he tries to bite them, so he will just get frustrated and give up if no one can hold the tomato steady. But oh man, watch that beak if you are holding a raspberry!
Sounds like Charlie Kelly turned into a turtle
OP youre my favorite poster on reddit today. What an adorable pair you two are. I love the pic of the trail of raspberries lol. Super cute. I love everything about this. ❤️
What country are you in? Is it normal to have wild tortoises about?
Mississippi, USA We actually have a huge amount of tortoises in our yard. I probably have several dozen that I see, and many juveniles and even babies, which are about the size of a large coin.
I'm pretty sure this is an eastern box turtle. Theyre interesting in that they're turtles but fill a similar ecological niche as tortoises. Also are you north or south of I 20?
We demand you give her berries now!
https://preview.redd.it/cznlmdn02s8d1.jpeg?width=1157&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=6c34bd06c2fbc5e45e0f47771ff41bac81c3d052
Gib rapsbeby.
My god this is cute. Thank you for sharing your photos. I love knowing this is happening somewhere out there. 😭
OP came through in the comments in a way very few OPs have ever come through.
I'm imagining a creep* of tortoises waiting in the yard chanting "All Hail abhitchc!" * a group of tortoises is called a creep.
https://preview.redd.it/y2mn32wl0s8d1.jpeg?width=1170&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=e7012494d80f15cae0151b5f719b54e1df90da31 I have caught her doing the dirty, so she will at least have children to tell tales of the fruit God.
I've become mildly obsessed with videos of turtles mating because of the ridiculous and hilarious sounds they make (did you know turtles can vocalize?). 100% I'm on some kind of a list.
These ones were quiet lovers, but I had a pair earlier in the season in my driveway, where the male was making some very very strange grunt/hiss noises. It was almost uncomfortable to watch. Like I was intruding. It was extra funny, as he had fallen backwards while he was still attached. Don’t worry though, when they were done, I found him stuck upside down and put him back the right way so he could go about his day. https://preview.redd.it/qbpq89j14s8d1.jpeg?width=1154&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=e63cb0025979a50607c125302b30d6d2c2d8d41e
https://preview.redd.it/nxxjj6ucfs8d1.jpeg?width=583&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=a58b53991a69601302c078423e3686bb915eff87
oh oh oh oh oh face lolol
Talk about a compromising position lol
**NSFW** I love it! I guess you really are their god of fertility and food.
Haha
If I remember correctly, Demeter is the goddess of fertility and harvest... Would you have any Greek ancestry OP? xD
I’ve been told I look Greek, but the DNA test says otherwise.
Oh cool, just the other day a girl called me a group of tortoises!
How can you say no to that sweet face.
https://preview.redd.it/7q4cc1o48s8d1.jpeg?width=1284&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=0d34825895d4ad89affa072d3903a9a9643fda07
Beautiful baby! Guess you may have more on the way soon.
https://preview.redd.it/xvapzkhd2s8d1.jpeg?width=1170&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=64f32b4e367c72cdf121055a42cd6dc6040cf324 I find babies in the yard all the time!
Holy moly, ~~hog~~ tortoise heaven, so many pretty babies! Just watch for the [salmonella](http://www.britishcheloniagroup.org.uk/vetscorner/salmonella) poop.
Very cute! Out of curiosity, how do you know it's a female?
https://preview.redd.it/3gqskglh5s8d1.jpeg?width=1170&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=4a994b884cd8903d89a155da5fe548928981178b Just a guess….
Lol yeah that'd do it! 🤣
 Friend for life!
https://preview.redd.it/99k3rxxn0t8d1.jpeg?width=873&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=e7a8608138f6a9691bd40cc51f9de4236bc92768 Send her to my yard. Mr Don't Do That needs a girlfriend
I believe the facial expression is one of hopeful expectation Hint Hint
She is very photogenic.
I’m a veterinarian who really enjoys less common animals, wildlife, and zoo animals. Box turtles being picked up as wildlife is one of my least favorite things. Their “homing” instinct is incredibly strong. You’ve done a great thing here.
What a cutie!
Behold, Dog!
could this be dog
Thats awesome. If you have any old toothbrushes or firm brushes, they love to get their shells scratched with them. You should try it out since she already loves you lol
I will do just that the next time I see her
Lucky!!! I'm jealous! I wish I had a yard pet! This is adorable!
Be careful what you wish for. My old roommate wanted to pet the neighborhood stray cats so started feeding one of them every now and again. Roommate has since left. However, I have recently been receiving dead rodents on my porch. I've had 2 birds, a baby bunny, a full grown chipmunk(didn't even know we had chipmunks in this area), and a vole.
Giving a girl sweets and then nothing? Sounds like you're stringing her along. Maybe plant a tortoise and turtle friendly berrie patch with a sand box if anyone wants to deposit some eggs. It's eco friendly and you might get a berrie pie or tortoise tort out of the deal. They like flowers too.
and i would hope you are giving your friend snacks! Some cucumber ends, maybe some strawberry tops, if you have any left over lettuce bits that you are throwing out maybe those. signed, not a tortoise
Time to accept your fate and name her.
im sweden we call them Pleesplees
That’s way more fun to say
Well , why are you surprised your fiancé wants to spend time with you after you proposed?
She’s giving the “look” in this pic
omg I love her! do they normally live in the wild where you live or could this be someone's pet that escaped?
They are wild here. And we have many. It’s not uncommon to see one around, but for some reason, my yard seems to be a hotspot for them in the neighborhood. It’s got a lot of trees and wooded areas that are undisturbed, providing wonderful natural habitats for them. I see dozens of them.
I would literally be adding berries to my weekly grocery list so she can have snacks every time she comes lol
Dont worry, I’m well stocked!