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this damn turtle...


mchookem

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... needs a new home! any ideas?

red-eared slider...i rescued him from a friend's daughter about 20 years ago (they bought on a whim in CA when daughter was like 5...i'm an animal lover and couldn't stand seeing him kept in a shoebox, he's a damn water turtle! 🤬)

anyway... brought him home and progressed thru increasingly sized aquariums until my husband built him a pond on our patio where he now lives happily with several goldfish.

but we're planning to list/move in the spring and i'm not sure what to do with Spot 😕

releasing to the wild is not an option as he would likely starve. most turtle rescues are either full or don't take RES.

does he convey with the house?? i mean i would be all 'hey that's cool!' if i was buying this house but i'm sure i'm the exception.

i've been thru a cat and four dogs since i've had him...i did not know they live like 50 years 😐

anybody want a turtle?? 

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1 hour ago, mchookem said:

... needs a new home! any ideas?

red-eared slider...i rescued him from a friend's daughter about 20 years ago (they bought on a whim in CA when daughter was like 5...i'm an animal lover and couldn't stand seeing him kept in a shoebox, he's a damn water turtle! 🤬)

anyway... brought him home and progressed thru increasingly sized aquariums until my husband built him a pond on our patio where he now lives happily with several goldfish.

but we're planning to list/move in the spring and i'm not sure what to do with Spot 😕

releasing to the wild is not an option as he would likely starve. most turtle rescues are either full or don't take RES.

does he convey with the house?? i mean i would be all 'hey that's cool!' if i was buying this house but i'm sure i'm the exception.

i've been thru a cat and four dogs since i've had him...i did not know they live like 50 years 😐

anybody want a turtle?? 

turtle stays with the house.

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https://www.livescience.com/spacex-zero-g-turtle-indicator

Quote

Outside of Earth's 'shell,' SpaceX's Crew-3 reveal turtle as zero-g indicator

By Robert Z. Pearlman about 14 hours ago

"We are really excited about the upcoming Turtle-takeover of the space station."

A sequined sea turtle floats above Crew-3 astronaut Kayla Barron's head aboard the SpaceX Dragon spacecraft "Endurance." The doll served as the mission's "zero-g indicator" and signaled the flight of the first members of "The Turtles" in space.A sequined sea turtle floats above Crew-3 astronaut Kayla Barron's head aboard the SpaceX Dragon spacecraft "Endurance." The doll served as the mission's "zero-g indicator" and signaled the flight of the first members of "The Turtles" in space. (Image credit: NASA TV)

The "turtle-takeover" of outer space has begun.
 
Just moments after entering Earth orbit on Wednesday (Nov. 10), SpaceX Crew-3 astronaut Kayla Barron released a sparkling sea turtle to float above her head. The "zero-g indicator," a doll used to show that she and her three crewmates' were in the microgravity environment of space, was also a signal that "The Turtles" had arrived.
"We do have a few things in store ... for representing our class in space," Barron said in a pre-flight interview with collectSPACE.com. "We are really excited about the upcoming Turtle-takeover of the space station."
 
Barron and her Crew-3 commander, Raja Chari, are both "Turtles," or members of NASA's 22nd class of astronauts selected in 2017. Following a long-standing tradition, the nickname was chosen by the preceding astronaut class as a good-natured rub that the 12 then-new recruits were a tad green around the collar, a bit shell-shocked at being selected and, given the effects of a hurricane at the time, faced having their new homes submerged underwater just as they arrived at the Johnson Space Center in Houston.
Now, as the first members of their class to launch into space, Barron and Chari were proud to let their Turtle "flag" fly.

"We have got some decorations to take along with us," Chari told collectSPACE earlier this year, possibly referencing the then-still-secret zero-g indicator. "Definitely some references to turtles that I think we'll see, once we get up."

Update: During a downlink from the Crew Dragon "Endurance," Barron introduced her and her crewmates zero-g indicator: "We want to introduce our zero-g indicator, 'Pfau' — that's German for 'peacock.' We chose Pfau to be our zero-g indicator because Raj and I are both from the class called "The Turtles," and we're excited to represent our class in space. Tom [Marshburn] is a 'Peacock,' so to get everybody on board we picked a peacock turtle — you'll notice she's peacock colored — and we named her Pfau, which is German for peacock," said Barron. "The Peacocks" was the nickname for NASA's 19th astronaut class selected in 2004. The choice of German is a nod to Crew-3's fourth member, Matthias Maurer of the European Space Agency.

The plush sea turtle appeared to be "Emerald Tara Turtle," an 11-inch-long (28-cm) doll produced by Aurora World as part of its "Sea Sparkles" line. The toy's soft shell is lined in sequins that when reversed change color from green to silver.

The doll quickly sold out online within minutes of Barron revealing it in space. Aurora World's web page describing the plush turtle was removed from its catalog, seemingly confirming the identification. A similar toy, featuring rainbow, rather than green sequins also sold out.

The public's interest in the Crew-3 zero-g indicator continues a trend that began with SpaceX's first flight of a Crew Dragon spacecraft to the International Space Station in 2019. The Demo-1 mission lacked astronauts on board, but launched a plush planet Earth. Celestial Buddies, the maker of the doll, was inundated with orders overnight.

Similar demand was seen for "Tremor," a sequined Apatosaurus dinosaur doll made by Ty, which flew with SpaceX's first mission to carry astronauts to and from the space station. Since then, other zero-g indicators have included a toy version of Star Wars' "Grogu" ("Baby Yoda"), a Jellycat "My First Penguin" named by its crew "GuinGuin," and a Gund-made spacesuit-clad puppy modeled after St. Jude Children's Research Hospital's facility dogs. The latter continues to sell out each time the hospital's gift shop restocks them.
The tradition of flying zero-g indicators was borrowed from the Russian space program and the world's first person to fly into space. Yuri Gagarin flew a small doll with him on his Vostok 1 mission in 1961. Later, cosmonauts launched with stuffed toys, often the choice of their children, and hung them from their spacecraft control panels.

Although likely unintended by the Crew-3 astronauts, which in addition to Barron and Chari also includes NASA astronaut Tom Marshburn and Matthias Maurer of the European Space Agency (ESA), "turtles" also holds another connotation in U.S. space history. Mercury astronaut Walter "Wally" Schirra was challenged over his membership in the Ancient Order of Turtles, a drinking club that began among World War II pilots.

 

"Hey, Wally, are you a turtle?" came the call from Mission Control just minutes into his 1962 Sigma 7 mission. By the rules of the Order, Schirra had to answer "You bet your sweet ass I am!" or be forced to buy drinks for everyone within earshot. Unable to say the then-off color reply over open air, Schirra recorded his answer and played it back once back on the ground.

At least one member of "The Turtles," though, recognized the connection.
 
"You bet your sweet astronaut they are!" tweeted Zena Cardman, responding to a Twitter post about her classmates' zero-g indicator on Wednesday night.
 
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19 hours ago, mchookem said:

... needs a new home! any ideas?

red-eared slider...i rescued him from a friend's daughter about 20 years ago (they bought on a whim in CA when daughter was like 5...i'm an animal lover and couldn't stand seeing him kept in a shoebox, he's a damn water turtle! 🤬)

anyway... brought him home and progressed thru increasingly sized aquariums until my husband built him a pond on our patio where he now lives happily with several goldfish.

but we're planning to list/move in the spring and i'm not sure what to do with Spot 😕

releasing to the wild is not an option as he would likely starve. most turtle rescues are either full or don't take RES.

does he convey with the house?? i mean i would be all 'hey that's cool!' if i was buying this house but i'm sure i'm the exception.

i've been thru a cat and four dogs since i've had him...i did not know they live like 50 years 😐

anybody want a turtle?? 

Make Thad keep him as part of the listing agreement

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There is a great spot in Brushy Creek. From Twin Lakes Y continue on the path until you cross the creek and get to the soccer fields. Take the second path on the right which is a mountain bike path. It is about 2.12mi from the start of the path. Go past the first set of trees in the water on the opposite side of the creek. At the second set of trees in the water, you will notice up to 30 different types of turtles sunning on the downed trees. There are red ears and snappers. I even saw a box turtle on the trail nearby. Let him know what is going on. Tell him that you are doing it for his own good. Tell him that you love him and will miss him dearly. Give him a kiss and let him go. But make sure to write your new address on his back in fingernail polish before you send him on his way. If he ever finds a mirror, he might just come back to see you some day. Good luck.

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10 hours ago, mchookem said:

i'll try on Nextdoor and fb and see if there are any takers.

Maybe ask around at your local Petsmart.

I learned that relocated turtles wander around trying to find their old territory, so I wouldn't put a wild one out in a different patch of woods. A hand-raised one even less so. I don't think that was your plan though.

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23 hours ago, Helobious said:

Turtles lived for millions of years without humans. Turn him loose in some big river or lake. He may or may not be fine. But he will definitely be free.

Turtles today are wimps. Back in the day, they lived through ice ages, through lava flows, and giant meteors. Nowadays, baby turtles are spoiled. They just hide in their shells and watch the walls all day waiting to be fed. Rarely do they hang out with their friends. They are slower too and they don't take to coaching very well. I mainly blame the older generation for being too soft on their kids and letting them be like Franklin rather that the rough and tumble older generation. I also blame Tom Herman because well, he sucks.

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I was planning to talk about this over Thanksgiving dinner - I've had a recurring dream about a Capuchin Monkey named MonkeyPox. It isn't real funny in its own rite - more like Frank Stallone or the intermission scenes in Monty Python movies. Well, I should say that I don't find it funny. I think you have to be on drugs and I don't do drugs. I tell all the kids no to the drugs. No drogas.

Anyway, I was going to talk about MonkeyPox over Thanksgiving dinner because that is the toughest audience that I know. They are very conservative. But, I'm worried that they won't get MonkeyPox and they will all just stare at me - except for my sister-in-law because she wears a burka. That worries me. I can't let MonkeyPox die at lease not that way among people not friendly to MonkeyPox. So I will release MonkeyPox here.

So typically in this dream MonkeyPox saves a small town from a snake invasion with his trusty dog friend. He then rides away on a horse with a cute cat in the right side satchel and everyone in town says "Thanks MonkeyPox" and waves as he rides his horse out of town. Well, I think in a subsequent story MonkeyPox rides into town and helps a damsel in distress who doesn't know what to do with her damn turtle. Well, MonkeyPox saves the day and takes the turtle and places it in the horses left side satchel and rides out of town with the kitten on his right and the turtle on his left. And everyone will wave and thank MonkeyPox as he rides out of town.

In reality, and I've been thinking about this a lot, MonkeyPox is UT football. Everyone loves MonkeyPox but simultaneously everyone also hates MonkeyPox. We need to save MonkeyPox and make UT football fun again.

 

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How much effort is the turtle to take care of? Do you have to buy goldfish or pellets regularly? 

Is his pond heated? Take a lot of upkeep? 

Just wondering how much burden he might be to a new owner. 

Also curious, is he able to escape his pond if he chose to? Like is he content there and staying of his own free will or would he wander off if given the chance?

 

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On 11/23/2021 at 8:08 PM, Austinvines said:

What size? I’ve got a friend who keeps red ears.

slightly smaller than a dinner plate. if they have a larger pond... i'd honestly be interested in re-homing him...if you're inclined to ask 😊

On 11/23/2021 at 3:53 PM, BillyBadAss said:

How much effort is the turtle to take care of? Do you have to buy goldfish or pellets regularly? 

Is his pond heated? Take a lot of upkeep? 

Just wondering how much burden he might be to a new owner. 

Also curious, is he able to escape his pond if he chose to? Like is he content there and staying of his own free will or would he wander off if given the chance?

 

he's super low maintenance honestly...biggest effort is cleaning the pump maybe 2-3 times/year. the pond has a small heater, works great except obviously when we lost power in February for five days... every fish died but Spot just took a five day nap (i was actually worried about him but he just quickly went into hibernation!)

he eats turtle pellets available at any pet store. he has a basking platform and has to have special UVA/UVB light for several hours daily - those bulbs need replacing about every two months or so.

he likes to climb (as turtles do) but he's only managed to get out once in all these years...but it's in an enclosed patio so he can't go anywhere anyway...though i suppose if he found the doggie door he could get out 😄

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4 hours ago, BearSchlong said:

Are you kidding?

image.thumb.png.38b6dce5bbbbc57bd90cdb85ceb08d8e.png

so who's a member and can help me smuggle him in? 🤨

also i totally thought about the campus pond, i too used to hang out there, and there was also a greenhouse right around there that was cool to explore. #UTmemories

anyways i figured they strongly frowned on just dropping off turtles, don't they study them or something? i'd still have to smuggle him in there lol

poor Spot.

this would be a lot easier if i wasn't an animal lover 😒

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