Nanticoke E Box Turtle Eastern Box Baltimore, MD

Update September 2022: I found a loving home in Maryland! MATTS probably has other box turtles for adoption. Please ask if interested.

PLEASE READ THE FOLLOWING BEFORE CONTACTING MATTS OR requesting an application. Many of your questions will be answered below.

I'm an adult male eastern box turtle (Terrapene carolina carolina) who was for adoption the Baltimore, Maryland, area. I'm about 6" long and probably 20-50 years old, but could live another 20-50 years! I'm for adoption because my people were getting too old to care for me. They were at least the second home I've had, and I'm looking for my permanent home.

I have a cosmetic birth defect; I have too many sections to my shell (16 instead of the typical 13 on top) that makes me easy to identify. Also, my first home didn't take good care of me, which caused my shell to be too short from metabolic bone disease, but I'm healthy now and even used to hibernating outside in the winter, although I can live indoors just as easily. If you have a LARGE outdoor enclosure, I could be adopted with another male that I've lived with for the last few years, but he and I would probably bother each other too much in an indoor enclosure.

For my indoor winter pen, or if I'm indoors permanently, a "turtle table" would be a good home, and it should at least 8 square feet of space, along with a substrate such as aged hardwood bark mulch (NOT the same mulch as in the picture; I was in a temporary display for that picture and the right mulch wasn't on hand for that), a water pan, artificial plants for hiding, and a heat light and UVB light over one end. Visit matts-turtles.org or e-mail matts_adoptions@hotmail.com to see ideas for temporary housing. This link shows you how to make an inexpensive indoor habitat from a book case. http://nebula.wsimg.com/53c57892d611153a60ef8bde1be11925?AccessKeyId=A3E784782F81D21389AD&disposition=0&alloworigin=1

A backyard pen should be screened in completely to keep out rats and raccoons. It should have lots of room for exploring and digging and soaking in a water pan or shallow pond designed just for box turtles.

To learn more about box turtles, visit http://www.boxturtlesite.org/ or pick up a copy of Box Turtles by Tess Cook, available in some pet stores or on-line. To find instructions for a simple backyard box turtle enclosure, visit http://www.billsboxturtles.com

I am eating the diet recommended here, but my foster family uses Mazuri or Zoo Med Growth Formula aquatic turtle food as the base of the diet (always soaked in water until soft, of course): http://www.boxturtlefacts.org/Feeding_North_American_Box_Turtles.pdf
I love earthworms, strawberries, and plain baked sweet potato, but I need variety in my diet to stay healthy.

Keep in mind that males may harass lone females to the point of illness or death, and will likely fight with other males unless you have a VERY large enclosure with lots of visual barriers and hide spots, so it's probably best if I'm a single turtle unless you have a huge backyard enclosure for the summer.

There's a $30 adoption fee. Local adopters pick up by appointment in Baltimore, Timonium, or Parkton, MD. Shipping is possible if adopters pay for shipping (usually $40 to $100 depending on location) and temperatures allow.
Our turtles come with a no sale/no trade adoption contract, and the edge of the shell is notched for easy visual ID.
TO REQUEST AN APPLICATION, e-mail matts_adoptions@hotmail.com - make sure to indicate YOUR CITY AND STATE.

I CANNOT be adopted to VA, GA, WV, PA, or most points north of PA on the eastern shore due to regulations in those states, although you can have a box turtle in CT.

Maryland residents may require a permit IF they already have an eastern box turtle. If I'm your only eastern box turtle, then you don't need a permit in Maryland.

Residents of NJ, IN, and OH require a permit for EBTs. You CAN adopt me in NJ, OH, and MD before getting your permit.

NY residents would need a special license (Education/Exhibition License to Collect or Possess) from the DEC to keep a box turtle. https://www.dec.ny.gov/permits/28633.html

In NJ, since our adoption contract serves as a receipt, visit https://www.state.nj.us/dep/fgw/exotic_apps.htm

For MD (only if you will have more than one eastern box turtle), visit https://dnr.maryland.gov/wildlife/Pages/Licenses/captive.aspx

Like turtles but can't have one? Want to help? Become a member. Ask us for educational photos to share on social media. Share our main website or share the adoptable turtle profiles on social media. Don't take turtles from the wild just to be a pet.
MATTS accepts tax-deductible donations at MATTS, P.O. Box 341, Highland, MD 20777, or through PayPal at http://www.matts-turtles.org/support.html.
Rescue is funded by donations only, and we find homes for over 100 animals a year.