It was a warm spring day. Unseasonably so. Despite the gorgeous weather, the two-lane road had little traffic. Suddenly, I saw a turtle crossing the road in front of me. There was nothing behind me and I was on a straight section of the road. Deciding to risk the danger, I stopped with my emergency blinkers brightly flashing. I ran and 'rescued' the turtle. These photos show the Yellow Bellied Slider and his/her new home. I normally don't advocate moving an animal more than a few feet from it's location, but for the safety of it and the motorists, I took it to the nearby creek as this was in a residential area. Unfortunately, it was too shy to come out. Due to being dry from the road's heat, I didn't take the time to wait as I normally would've.

Always remember to never handle wildlife unless you know what you are doing. Turtles can carry salmonella and snapping turtles can be very dangerous. This was a harmless variety, but I still was very gentle and properly sanitized my hands before and after handling.