Turtle Update

A week and a half ago, we decided it was time to bring the little guys inside. Butch bought a larger aquarium since I found out in my research that the plastic tank I had been using was woefully too small. I thought catching those little suckers was going to be a problem---they are really fast and can hide well. As it turned out, it had gotten a little chilly, so they were half frozen and easy to catch. We decided that we would keep them on the hearth in the family room as the tank is too big for the kitchen counter now. I promptly went on the internet to make sure that I was doing everything possible to make sure that Sydney and Sheldon were getting the best of care. I found that they need to have a varied diet. I'm sure they had all kinds of treats while in the pond outside, but inside, I only have the original pellets that the girls gave me. I went to a website that specializes in red-eared sliders and ordered $30.00 worth of various food including dried crickets. I couldn't wait for the food to arrive to see them get excited for all the special treats I bought them. They didn't act excited at all. I think they live by Butch's philosoply---they just "eat to live" rather than "live to eat" like most of us.

By the fifth day of being indoors, they started to really stink. Butch was ranting and raving that I had overfed them and the excess food had fouled the water. He was totally right and I acknowledged that fact. But knowing Butch, he gets on something like a dog on a bone and won't let go. The problem was that I needed him to clean the tank as now it's too heavy for me to manage. He said, "I knew this would become my job"! I told him that if he didn't want to clean their tank each week, then we could just take them to Pet Smart and give them away. He said, "No, because you love them". Awwww, isn't he sweet? But of course, I'll have to listen to the complaining each week when he cleans their tank. And you can bet that they will no longer be getting the warm showers and scrub (with an old toothbrush) that they got from me.

There was a split second when I was ordering the food that I had an evil thought. When the food cost came to $30.00, I noticed that you could buy the turtles for $1.75 each. I considered just flushing them---cheaper. And I am getting sick of them. But now, they are just one more responsibility. And to think I have to hire someone to take care of them when I'm out of town. I'm so over them.