Posted on 11/26/2004 8:45:00 AM PST by Willie Green
He wasn't going to snap about it, but Fred Bruckman thought the state law governing turtle sales needed tinkering.
So he went and got it changed.
In Harrisburg, this is no easy feat. Amending any law usually involves shadowy midnight deals between high-ranking legislators and well-connected lobbyists.
This is what makes Bruckman's achievement so out of the ordinary. He is neither legislator nor lobbyist, and he usually is in bed before midnight.
Bruckman sells reptiles for a living, and the law made it difficult for him to traffic in turtles.
(Excerpt) Read more at pittsburghlive.com ...
Goes to prove that you can't get anywhere in life unless you stick you neck out.
Turtles aren't "pets". My guess is that most of them die soon after being purchased.
Let us not mock turtles.
Let us not mock turtle soup.
What I particularly liked was the Banner at the bottom of the Article for "Live Turtles" ;^)
TT
I beg to differ. Turtles are pets. I had a box turtle years ago and he was a very interesting pet. He was rather intelligent too. He would "beg" for food. He particularly liked popcorn, ice cream and watermelon. He would "bump" against the refrigerator when he was hungry because he'd figured out that's where the food was kept. In fact, he got do fat he couldn't retract back into his shell. They are also remarkably long lived.
Thinking the same thing--turtle soup.
"This politician not only does not know anything about turtles but he knows nothing of the habits of illiterate children nor of their foolish parents."
So we should probably enact lots of other laws limiting the rights of intelligent children and capable parents in order to protect illiterate children and their foolish parents... Oh wait, we've already been doing that for years.
most pet baby turtles die. turtles require a lot of knowledge and some expense to care for--and most places that used to sell them didn't really inform people about that. they sold little plastic pools and fake "turtle food", and the animals probaly starved to death.
the baby turtles they used to sell were not box turtles, but aquatic turtles (mostly red ears), which are pretty difficult to take care of. we have one that is over 30 years old, and it would really be almost impossible for a little kid to care for it. most of the baby turtles i bought as an adult (back in the 1970's, before the ban) didn't live very long.
box turtles probably make better pets, but most kids would still probably kill it.
Actually it was my kids who "found" the little box turtle and brought it home. (This was back in the early 1960's) They wanted to know if they could keep him and if he could become a "pet".
Well, the "long and short" of the story is that I said "yes". (They named him "Roy"). They kept him in a "box". (a box for a "box turtle")
It became rather obvious that Roy didn't like the confinement of his box so I allowed them to let Roy roam "free" in their rooms.
Some little time later, Roy had the "run of the house".
The reason Roy became to love foods such as popcorn and ice cream was because when my kids were sitting on the floor watching TV, Roy would "crawl" between them and "beg for food" and they would feed him whatever they were eating which was usually ice cream or popcorn.
(By the way, Roy developed a "taste" for Jerky too)
Roy was a good little turtle. He had a little "sandbox" where he'd "do his personal business".
After the kids grew up and left home, Roy would walk up and down the hallway "banging his shell" against the baseboards of the hallway.
When the kids would come home to visit, I'd tell them about it. They said that he'd started his own protest movement. They even made a little "protest sign" for him.
(That was back in the 1970's)
(Thanks for the memories)
When turtles are outlawed, only outlaws will have turtles...
Nonsense. My guess is that most of them die soon after being purchased.
I had one turtle for fifteen years before I gave it to a neighbor's kid when I moved years ago--last I heard it was doing fine.
But you are correct that most turtles sold as pets used to die quickly, as most people who bought them relied on store-bought turtle food, which used to be (and may still be) no good.
I fed my turtle live goldfish, bits of steak, and live insects.
I would be in favor of "warning" labels being stuck to their shells. You know, the kind of label that is almost impossible to remove unless you use a hammer and chisel. They always seem to use these on the really high visibility products such as glasswear and pottery and you ultimately have to turn the thing around so that damn sticker goo that you were unable to remove is facing the back....
Amending any law usually involves shadowy midnight deals between high-ranking legislators and well-connected lobbyists.
BTTT!!!!!!
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