Turtle #77 admitted to KTTC this season was truly a unique case. The majority of the turtles arriving at the centre have been hit by cars, or occasionally boats. We even get the occasional call about turtles stranded in construction sites or pools. 2012-077 however, came to us having been kicked by a horse!
On June 3rd, a man named Bruce was on a trail ride with his horse when they stumbled upon a large turtle laying her eggs at the side of the trail. The horse was spooked at the sight of the dark object moving in its path and kicked at the snapping turtle. Bruce immediately called us to explain the bizarre situation. When she arrived at the Centre she had a large fracture on her carapace (top portion of her shell). She was immediately treated for shock with fluids, pain medication and antibiotics. Once stable, she was x-rayed to determine if she was still carrying eggs… and she was! 32 of them! Over the course of the next few weeks she gradually laid her eggs, which are currently incubating in our “Turtle Nursery”, along with nearly 1,000 other eggs. On July 23, 2012, our veterinarian, Dr. Carstairs deemed her ready to go and she was released back into the area. Hopefully she will not have any more horse encounters.
