RSS
Home
Selling baby turtles is still illegal
Print
Email
RSS
Subscribe
Did you know that selling baby turtles is illegal? Their resurgence and popularity in specialty pet food stores and pet shops had me thinking otherwise for awhile.
Recently I saw an aquarium at my local pet food store filled with little turtles crawling all over each other. The tank was set up right next to the cash register for every customer (and their children) to see.
When I commented to the clerk about them she said, “They’re very popular and kids really love them.”
Then I asked her when they had become legal to sell again. She just stood there with a wide grin on her face that read – Caught me.
But in 2009 the popularity of these little reptiles has exploded. In fact since 1996 the number of baby turtles has doubled. The boom has happened because turtles are cheap to breed, easy to transport and because the FDA doesn’t have the capacity to check on every pet shop, flea market or food store to see that they aren’t selling them.
However, the new 2009 pet turtle carries just as much salmonella as the 1975 banned version and parents should not let their children touch them.
Furthermore, selling baby turtles is a cruel practice. Thousands of them die because of poor shipping methods or because owners don’t know how to take care of them once they bring them home. And the turtles that survive soon outgrow their aquariums and are often released into the wild by their owners.
Most of these orphaned turtles die from exposure to the elements or from starvation. And the ones who do stay alive cause big problems because they compete against native turtles for natural resources. Oregon has a large issue with store bought turtles overrunning the territory of turtles that are natural to the area.
So please leave the turtles alone when you see them at the pet store or any other place. They are illegal to buy and it’s the only way to stop breeders from flooding the market with them.
Related Articles:
Add a Comment
