Snapping turtle needs safe haven

It was out of its element, to say the least.

There it was, in the middle of the freeway — a 35-pound snapping turtle. Lost, injured and nowhere near his native habitat.

It happened May 30 when Division of Wildlife Resources officer Ray Loken was taking the turtle — found by some children in the Jordan River — to his home as a temporary holding place.

The turtle ended up in the middle of I-80 after it climbed out of the back of Loken's pickup truck. A passer-by found the turtle on the interstate and took it to Cottonwood Animal Hospital.

Loken had picked up the turtle at an animal control agency in West Jordan. He said it was secured in a large plastic bin with a lid that fastened on the top.

"The incident is embarrassing and was an accident," he said. "I care deeply about animals, reptiles in particular."

The turtle was later taken to the Bird & Exotic All Pet Hospital where veterinarian Martin Orr treated it for scratches and scrapes.

The turtle stayed in the clinic for two weeks and was returned to the division in good condition. Division director Jim Karpowitz said the agency is in the process of finding a home for the turtle.

Mike Fowlks, the division's chief of law enforcement, said the DWR has only one temporary holding facility for reptiles, located in a storage room in the law enforcement building. Loken's home is another temporary holding place for the animals. But the agency is now building a permanent holding facility that should open in two weeks.

"What happened with the snapping turtle was unfortunate, and we are taking measures to rectify the situation," Fowlks said.

Some reptile enthusiasts who have worked with DWR do not believe the agency has adequate facilities and abilities to take care of reptiles, even with the new holding facility.

"They don't have anywhere to keep these prohibited species, so what are they doing picking them up?" said Jim Dix, a Salt Lake resident and founder of Reptile Rescue, a volunteer organization that takes in lost, homeless and abused reptiles.

Fowlks said he is thankful for people like Dix and appreciates the concerns he has brought to the division's attention. Fowlks said the DWR accepts responsibility for its actions and is training officers in how to deal with reptiles.