The Three Musketeers (photos!)

I am officially in love with box turtles, they are really very interesting animals. Very cute, already seeing different personalities in each of them, and two of them are barely yearlings. Without further adieu, meet our three newest family members, Aramis, Athos and Porthos!

Aramis is the biggest, he's 2-3 years old.

http://i9.photobucket.com/albums/a86...DSC_1512-1.jpg

Athos is the smallest, we believe he hatched last June.

http://i9.photobucket.com/albums/a86...DSC_1510-1.jpg

http://i9.photobucket.com/albums/a86...e/DSC_1535.jpg

And, Porthos, he's a little bit bigger than Athos.

http://i9.photobucket.com/albums/a86...DSC_1511-1.jpg

Here are the two littlest ones.

http://i9.photobucket.com/albums/a86...e/DSC_1536.jpg

http://i9.photobucket.com/albums/a86...e/DSC_1537.jpg

One more post...

Aramis, being the oldest, is a lot more active than Athos and Porthos, who mostly stay underground.

Soaking and surveying the area. I love this one. :)

http://i9.photobucket.com/albums/a86...e/DSC_0380.jpg

He really likes this spot, although I moved the pot and put a coconut hut there, now.

http://i9.photobucket.com/albums/a86...e/DSC_0345.jpg

Cutie.

http://i9.photobucket.com/albums/a86...e/DSC_0360.jpg

Long neck!

http://i9.photobucket.com/albums/a86...e/DSC_0373.jpg

This is their home.

http://i9.photobucket.com/albums/a86...e/DSC_0382.jpg

http://i9.photobucket.com/albums/a86...e/DSC_0354.jpg

Hope you all like the photos, they are a lot of fun!

Wow, that is quite an elaborate set up you have for them. And rather big for 3 wee ones!

I like the names, that is cute.

In the long next shot, was he reaching for food? Gee, he sure is stretching out at something interesting.

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Originally Posted by Freedom

Wow, that is quite an elaborate set up you have for them. And rather big for 3 wee ones!

I like the names, that is cute.

In the long next shot, was he reaching for food? Gee, he sure is stretching out at something interesting.

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Actually, everyone I've talked to that has turtles, says that it's the perfect size for a turtle Aramis's size. It is a little much for the two little ones, but for Aramis, it's just right. :) And, it was a lot cheaper to build that than it was to purchase a glass terrarium.

He wasn't reaching for food, I had him in a shallow dish to soak and he was curious as to what was outside of his little pool. :D

Kari, they are so cute! I love the names you chose too. I don't know a thing about turtles but yours are just so cute and look like they have a great place to live. How big will they get? I look forward to many more pics!

Oh good lord Kari, I'm not the type generally to "squeee" but young turtles bring me pretty close to it ;). Love them, love them, love them! I absolutely adore box turtles and yours are beautiful. What a fantastic home you have set them up with. I just love seeing them, please post more pics anytime you feel like!

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Originally Posted by RobiLee

Kari, they are so cute! I love the names you chose too. I don't know a thing about turtles but yours are just so cute and look like they have a great place to live. How big will they get? I look forward to many more pics!

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I didn't have a clue about turtles, either. :) A coworker of David's was telling us about his turtle garden at home, and jokingly asked if I wanted some baby turtles. I said yes! So, over the last few months, I've been reading and asking and researching and am now relatively knowledgeable of basic turtle care. :) I won't be giving too much advice any time soon, but I'm confident that I can keep my three happy and healthy!

If I'm not mistaken, box turtles get about six inches. Not a large animal at all.

I will post many more photos, as long as I know folks wanna see them!

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Originally Posted by K9soul

Oh good lord Kari, I'm not the type generally to "squeee" but young turtles bring me pretty close to it ;). Love them, love them, love them! I absolutely adore box turtles and yours are beautiful. What a fantastic home you have set them up with. I just love seeing them, please post more pics anytime you feel like!

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hahaha, I'm the same way about young turtles, Jess. But I am the type to generally squee. :) But, yeah, they are seriously way up there on the cute scale. Aramis is quite beautiful, actually. David thinks he's a she, because the tail is a little skinnier and the eyes are not real brightly colored. But, it's hard to tell. Either way, I love them!

Cute little buggers, and a nice setup. I though male turtles had longer tails. They sure are tiny too, he doesn't sell them this small regularly?

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Originally Posted by IRescue452

Cute little buggers, and a nice setup. I though male turtles had longer tails. They sure are tiny too, he doesn't sell them this small regularly?

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You're right, I edited it. I don't know all there is to know about turtles, so I mixed up the wording on the tail. As for him selling his turtles, he doesn't. He's a friend and gave them to us. When his turtles hatch, and they are about a year old, he brings them indoors for a year or so and then puts them back out into his garden. So, instead of him keeping them in his house, we're keeping them in ours. We're hoping by the time they need more space, we'll be in a house again where we can build an outdoor enclosure.

Oh, my bad, I thought he was some sort of turtle dealer the way your posts sounded. Oops. An outdoor enclosure will be nice, I hear they are very good in the yard, eating all the dandilions. Then again I have no idea if you have dandilions in Texas.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by IRescue452

Oh, my bad, I thought he was some sort of turtle dealer the way your posts sounded. Oops. An outdoor enclosure will be nice, I hear they are very good in the yard, eating all the dandilions. Then again I have no idea if you have dandilions in Texas.

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Not sure what gave you that impression, but no big deal. He just has a turtle garden in his yard, it's on the side of his house and is really pretty. We all call him the turtle rancher and he has had boxies for about thirteen or so years. I'm sure they'd eat the heck of dandelions if they had access to them. I'll be bringing dandelion greens from the grocery store I work at to see if Aramis will like them. The little ones won't eat anything that doesn't wiggle right now, so they don't seem interested in anything but worms. But, Aramis likes fruits and veggies, so we're trying all sorts of them.

Your turtles are so cute! It will be fun watching them grow up. :)

omg, so cute.* i want one now. lol.

They are adorable - would love to see the turtle garden....

Hey, thanks for checking out my newest loves. They are very cute to watch. I mostly leave them to their own devices, but I do get them out and soak them daily and put them near their bowl when it's breakfast time (mealworms, ick).

It's really neat to see how different their personalities are already. Athos (the smallest) is not shy at all and gets quite grumpy (he makes a little sneezing sound almost like he's hissing at me) if I have to dig him up for soaking or eating. Porthos seems to be a bit more timid, even with the mealworms. Athos goes right in for the kill, whereas Porthos shies away if they move too quickly. ;) Aramis isn't timid at all, and actually watches us when we come near the enclosure. He rests almost completely buried, with just the very very top of his shell exposed, and his head out and resting on the dirt. It's really cute. :)

it's late and their lights are all out, so they're sleeping right now. They will wake up around 7 am tomorrow and I will be there with bells on, and mealworms for breakfast.

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Originally Posted by Brody's Mum

They are adorable - would love to see the turtle garden....

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Here is our friend, Rick, digging for turtles. :)

http://i9.photobucket.com/albums/a86...e/DSC_1507.jpg

I didn't get any really good photos, but I just love the area he has sectioned off for them. This is only about 1/3rd of the area. He really is fond of the turtles, he and his wife are really sweet.

http://i9.photobucket.com/albums/a86...e/DSC_1506.jpg

They are very cute! :D

I love their "house"!
And the garden your friend has for his is Wonderful!!