Quote Originally Posted by Karen View Post
I'd keep him and feed him and fatten him up over the winter, and then release him next spring once the weather is warm. It's not his fault he was hatched so late in the season - we usually see baby snappers in the spring, but he's very vulnerable at this size. He's a snapper, so it's not like he's gonna "imprint" much on you like a duckling would - they seem to pretty much come with all instructions included.

I suppose, to be responsible, you could call the local Audubon Society ...
Karen it is NEVER recommend to do such a thing. Once the turtle is with a human for more then 1-2 weeks, it is permanently a pet & cannot be released. They need to live in the wild from day 1 in order to build up immunities to things in the water. Tap water cannot provide that & releasing him is certain death. Not to mention its more then likely highly illegal to release them & might be even more illegal if he is considered a pest in that area.

If the turtle is being kept over the winter, it needs a permanent home with someone who can house him when he grows into a beast. Not saying he'll be aggressive, as you all know Axle is anything but aggressive *kisses his nose*.

That Common Snapping Turtle can grow to 50lbs+. They need a min of 300gal tank when fully grown. If overfed you can cause it's liver & other organs to prematurely fail due to over use. In captivity you can expect 25-30yrs maybe a little less, maybe much more. Shouldn't be less then 20yrs (unless the turtle has natural issues)! They need a lot of veggies in their diet, meat, organs, & bone. In simple terms a whole mouse/fish/rat (fish being best & more natural. too much red meat isn't good). The owner needs to be prepared for a VERY aggressive pet. They can bite much faster then you can move & they don't let go.

In my opinion you should have left it outside, but moved it to a better area, as most do not make good pets & most people don't/can't take care of one properly as they get too big & too aggressive.