SURRENDERING A TURTLE OR TORTOISE 🐢

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We accept turtles and tortoises when space and resources are available. Please note we are a turtle and tortoise sanctuary and educational facility, not a general rescue, and one of our primary missions is education. We share these animals with the public through open days, private tours, and social media outreach. While we occasionally perform rescue work and may rehabilitate and rehome some individuals, the majority of animals that come to our sanctuary are intended to remain with us for life. We pride ourselves on providing as natural a life as possible while ensuring each animal’s safety and long-term health.

Because we avoid overcrowding our slider ponds to minimize stress and maintain animal welfare, we charge a surrender (rehoming) fee for sliders and cooters. This fee goes directly back into building additional ponds so we can continue accepting sliders and cooters in the long term. Constructing and maintaining these ponds is an immense physical, mental, and financial undertaking, but it directly benefits both the turtles and their previous owners.

We may accept tortoises on occasion depending on available space and the species involved. However, we DO NOT accept sulcatas. Sulcatas have been massively overbred and have placed a huge strain on rescues and sanctuaries across the U.S.; because we receive a very high volume of inquiries specifically about this species, we may not be able to discuss sulcatas if you reach out. One of our educational goals is to show people better tortoise choices that are less likely to be abandoned or rehomed than sulcatas.

We also DO NOT accept any North American box turtle species — these are illegal to possess in our state.

If you need to rehome a turtle or tortoise, please text us at 205-393-6056. We receive multiple inquiries each day, so please allow us time to respond. When you contact us, we will ask you to send a few photos (if possible) so we can assess species, size, and sex to determine the best placement for the animal at our facility.

Rehoming fee for sliders and cooters: $150 per turtle. This fee supports the construction of future ponds and helps us continue our sanctuary work.