Millions of Baby Turtles in Grave Danger if Federal Ban on Turtle Sales Lifted

Turtles urgently need your help!

The sale of turtles who are smaller than 4 inches in diameter has been banned in the U.S. since 1975—and for good reason. Prior to the ban, approximately 280,000 cases of salmonellosis from exposure to baby turtles were reported in the U.S. every year. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the ban has prevented 100,000 children from getting salmonella every year. The consequences of this disease can be tragic: This year, less than three months after a bill that would lift the ban on turtle sales was introduced by U.S. Senator Mary L. Landrieu, a 4-week-old infant in Florida died of salmonella exposure from a pet turtle, a tragedy that prompted the Food and Drug Administration to issue a warning to parents.

Baby turtles are usually purchased on a whim by uninformed people. Usually, these animals are bought as pets for children who quickly lose interest in caring for them. Turtles can easily live to be 40 years old, and when they become adults—which happens quickly—and their novelty wears off, owners frequently tire of caring for them and, in the best case scenario, abandon them at animal shelters. Often the animals are “turned loose” outdoors, where they are not equipped to fend for themselves and usually perish or become a menace—and a possible disease threat—to local wildlife.

The bill introduced in Congress as HR 924 and S 540—also known as the Domestic Pet Turtle Market Access Act of 2007—is strictly about money. An estimated 78 commercial turtle farmers in Louisiana—who form a $9.4 million industry that raises and sells millions of baby turtles in the U.S. and beyond—stand to gain an estimated $300 million every year if this dangerous legislation passes. Currently, Louisiana turtle farmers breed 10 million turtles annually—mostly for export—and 75 percent to 80 percent of these animals are shipped to China. The turtles are shipped in extremely crowded conditions, and those that survive are then killed for their meat. If the ban is lifted, even more turtles will suffer.

Please call and write to your U.S. representative today and politely urge him or her to leave the current ban as is—for the sake of children, animals, and the environment. You can reach your representative by calling the U.S. Capitol switchboard at 202-224-3121 or by entering your zip code at Congress.org.

Please forward this alert to your friends, family members, and coworkers and encourage them to contact their representatives as well.

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