Turtle Rescue of NC

09/16/2025

We are still getting intakes almost daily of new turtles. Tonight’s eastern painted turtle will be with us through the winter, as most of the new intakes will, as they take extended periods of time to heal.

The weather is cooling down, turtles are making their way back home to the spaces that they will spend their next few months in a hibernation like state known as brumation in reptiles. Keep your eyes out for turtles in need!

This lady is super lucky she was found- you see those yellow rice looking speckles above her head- we call that “fly strike”, it’s eggs from a fly that would hatch into the larval form rapidly that we all know and love—- maggots! Ew! If you ever see these on an animal it NEEDS HELP! she also is missing a foot, has several layers of retained scutes, and has a lot of necrotic tissue still attached to her front right leg that will need to be cleaned up and medicated.

If you would like to support the work we do please donate, or share our post! Every little bit helps keep these guys thriving and healing so they cann return to the wild where they belong!

09/14/2025

This weekend we attended the Turtle Ally Certificate Program with the Turtle Rescue Team on the beautiful campus of NC State College of Veterinary Medicine. They created such a great program to spread outreach and information to students, veterinarians , vet techs, and licensed rehabilitators to further benefit our wild turtle friends allowing better access to care techniques and resources across our state and even our neighbor states! We give the highest level of gratitude and applause to the wonderful work that the veterinary staff, students, and volunteers of this 30 year old organization do for our wild friends in need!

09/09/2025

We wanted to share some exciting news 😍🐢about some of our newest resident turtles. (And ask for naming suggestions) based on their incuabtion temps we believe they will both be female.

On July 16th two very unique babies hatched from eggs that were harvested from a river cooter that was euthanized after being hit by a car. Her injuries were too severe to be survivable and the decision was made to humanely end her suffering. Her 16 eggs were hatched and 14 of her babies were returned to the wild a few weeks ago to continue her legacy. 🎉🐢

Two babies we hatched were different and after consulting with several experts it was discovered that they carry a rare genetic anomaly called “pastel” or clown morph. These highlighter yellow babies will retain this odd coloration throughout their lives- making them super susceptible to being eaten quickly by predators and we didn’t feel it in their best interest to release them.

We made that mama turtle a promise as we gave her final gift of peace to do right by her babies, and after much debate decided that giving them the best life we could as ambassadors for their species was the right call to keep these special babies safe.

If you would like to help us give them everything they will need now and in the future donations are greatly appreciated.

Ways to donate:

Amazon Wishlist:
https://www.amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/2CZJMDTZ4L3U6?ref_=wl_share

Paypal: https://www.paypal.com/ncp/payment/

Venmo:

CashApp: $TurtleRescueofNC

Zelle: 9103316996

09/03/2025

Anyone in the Goldsboro area heading to Charlotte are in the next week? We have a small sulcata tortoise that needs a ride to rescue! If you can help please text (910) 331-6996. OR if you live in the Goldsboro area and are missing your baby please reach out- proof of ownership required to claim.

08/30/2025

I got over 100 reactions on my posts last week! Thanks everyone for your support! 🎉

08/22/2025

It’s been all hands on deck after getting back from break trying to get everything coordinated for upcoming releases and care for everyone in the clinic. Babies are growing and getting ready to go home, wounds are healing. ❤️‍🩹

The second wave of turtles coming in injured has begun, please be on the lookout when driving and help them when you can. We are receiving multiple calls a day of turtles being hit by cars- please remember to jot down the location you found them or drop a pin on your Google map to help us get them back home 💚🐢

Picture is Spike grinning because we are pretty sure she was involved in the electrical cord heist…. 🤔

08/18/2025

08/09/2025

08/06/2025

Simon the eastern box turtle was brought to a pet store almost three months ago by a woman declaring intent to keep him as a pet. The staff at the store convinced her to leave him there, but didn’t know that he wouldn’t be releasable if no one knew where he came from.

We searched far and wide and begged the person who found him to come forward with that information, but she never did. We have accepted that we will never find Simon’s home and he will be non-releasable. 😔

Many people want us to release Simon, but we can’t, legally or ethically. Box turtles have very small home ranges and will try to walk back home— facing traffic, predators, and disrupted reproduction— no matter how far away they’re relocated. Some survive relocation, but most don’t.

Additionally, because box turtles travel such short distances in their lives, every region’s turtles have distinct DNA and carry a distinct profile of natural diseases. When one is moved, it can spread infections that are harmless to their own population but catastrophic to another. This is especially true when a box turtle was found on one side of a natural boundary, like the Tennessee river or the Cumberland Plateau.

These concerns about disease transmission are part of the reason that most states have laws forbidding the unauthorized import or export of native wildlife. The pet store where Simon was brought is just two miles from the Georgia state line, and it’s anyone’s guess whether he came from Tennessee or Georgia or somewhere else entirely. If we were to release turtle of unknown origin into Tennessee state lines, we would be violating the law and risking our license.

We wish Simon could go home, but he will instead become a treasured education animal, and will, hopefully, be able to spread the word about why removing box turtles from the wild is so wrong. 🐢

[Description: an eastern box turtle, dark brown and yellow in color, in dark brown substrate. He has red eyes and is standing next to a partially eaten pear about one-third his size.]

08/05/2025

More releases happening for our scaley friends! This beautiful eastern king snake was found entangled in netting and after a brief stay to rehydrate and shed damaged scales she was ready to return home! Happy life little one!

Did you know that king snakes are some of the most beneficial snakes to have around! They are great rodent control, non-venemous and completely harmless to humans, and for those of you that aren’t huge snake fans— these guys are known to eat other snakes, even the venomous ones!

Let’s all do our part to help these guys out to keep doing their important work keeping our ecosystems in check! If you see a snake in need of help, reach out to a licensed rehabber.