A boy and his turtle

Meet Toot, the friendly box turtle that we had been holding captive in our backyard.
Daniel loved Toot! He showed him to everyone who visited our house. He loved feeding Toot. Notice the turtle's red chin in the photo above. Yep, that's strawberry juice. Even if Toot did not appreciate his small living quarters, I am sure he enjoyed the abundant menu of worms, fruit, and veggies.

Daniel loved playing with Toot. Oh my, that poor turtle had likely never experienced such affection and adoration.


We decided to set Toot free on Friday. I told Daniel, "We are going to take Toot to a new home." I'm not sure if Daniel completely understood what was about to transpire, but he was very excited to load Toot in the car and drive to the local park/city pond. Daniel kept repeating "New home! Toot's new home!"

At the park, we said our farewells and released Toot in the weeds next to the pond. Daniel eagerly watched as Toot made a dash for the water and began swimming along the shore. After a few moments though, Daniel began patting his leg (in the same manner as you might call a dog) and saying, "Come, Toot! Come!" I explained that this was Toot's new home, and we were going to leave him there. Daniel handled it pretty well, and shouted "Bye, Toot!" as we headed back to the car.

Daniel still mentions Toot from time to time. When he and Brian visited that same park the next day, Daniel took his Daddy all around the pond looking and calling for Toot. Oh, the joys and sorrows of bringing home a box turtle!