like father, like turtle

Ashtyn has had a pet turtle for over a year now and, at this point, Crawler is a part of our family. I check on him to make sure he's eating his dinner, just like I do with my kids, and we give him regular baths, which we force upon our boys as well.

We knew pretty early on that Crawler was the perfect pet for our Ashtyn. In fact, Crawler and Ashtyn have a lot in common! Unlike most turtles, Crawler REFUSES to eat fruits and vegetables. He went through a stage where he would nibble at blueberries but soon he turned his nose up at those too just like every other fruit and veggie we put in his tank. Crawler will ONLY eat his store bought turtle food and even that he picks through. Hmmm. Sounds a lot like his owner!

Crawler is also easily startled and doesn't like us to mess with his habitat OR routine. When we clean out his tank Crawler snaps and scratches at us and if you even make eye contact with him when you go into Ashtyn's room he will usually leap off of his rock making such a big splash that water spills over the top of the tank! I call him cranky. We call Ash quirky. Coincidence? I think not...

During Crawlers most recent bath and tank cleaning he exhibited yet another behavior that is eerily similar to his daddy. Crawler can't be out of his tank for too long and he isn't supposed to be in too much direct sunlight but when we clean his tank we will usually put him in a tub on the back deck for a little fresh air. (We have no idea if turtles actually NEED fresh air but it sounds good...) This bathtime, though, I thought it might be fun to just put Crawler directly on the deck instead of inside his tub. Why not!? So, I put Crawler down and then cut him up a grape...just in case Crawler felt adventurous and wanted to eat it. I knew deep down inside that wasn't gonna happen...

At first, Crawler just stayed in his shell. He refused to come out. He's very anti social. Sound like someone else you know!? Then, when I put the grape in front of him he immediately came out of his shell but only long enough to TURN AWAY from the grape! After removing the grape from the deck (because it obviously wasn't appreciated) Crawler made a quick U-turn and made a bee line for the door! For real! He crawled as fast as his little legs would carry him and literally clawed at the door! I think there might be someone else in this family who refuses to play outside and when he's forced to usually ends up sitting under an umbrella on the deck reading a book! Ha!

So...since we couldn't let Crawler back in the house yet it was back into his tub on the deck. I guess we learned our lesson. Maybe next Crawler will start playing video games all day and watching entire seasons of Myth Busters on Netflix!?!?