Those who know me well are fully aware of how much I LOVE turtles.  I grew up surrounded by them in my parent’s house and formed a very strong bond with our red footed tortoise, Fred, who knew my voice and would come over to me if he heard it.  Turtles are such awesome, intelligent creatures – so incredible that they have barely evolved over the centuries.  So you can imagine my despair upon learning about the snapping turtle who was attacked by some individuals that hit her repeatedly with their golf clubs.

You can read the full story here (warning, they post the pre-treatment photos of the poor turtle, so it’s graphic).  Updates are showing the turtle did not survive and I am both saddened and furious by this entire situation.  This was a mother turtle who was out of the water to lay her eggs.  She meant absolutely no harm.  Whoever was involved in torturing this innocent animal is a sick and perverted individual who most likely abuses other living things, including humans.  I urge the police to take this case seriously, get the records of the tee times that day to narrow the suspect list, and charge these individuals to the full extent the law will allow.

“The greatness of a nation and its moral progress can be judged by the way its animals are treated” -Mahatma Gandhi