DIY Turtle Egg Care

Protect your turtle eggs until they hatch! Poke small holes around the top edge of a plastic container and make a mixture of vermiculite, sphagnum moss and peat moss. Soak the egg bedding with water, squeeze out the excess liquid and fill the container with the bedding. Carefully search for the egg nest and at a cool time of day, uncover the eggs like an archaeologist and use a marker to place a dot on the top of each shell. Transfer the eggs to the incubator and ensure the marker dot on each egg stays upright. Check the soil moisture each week by rubbing the soil between two fingers to ensure a bit of liquid squeezes out and pour water over the eggs and bedding to add moisture if needed. Cut a notch in the rim of the container lid if necessary to prevent jarring the baby turtles as the container is opened and closed, and monitor the container temperature throughout the eggs’ development by setting a thermometer on the soil or poking a hole in the lid and resting the thermometer in the hole.