Turtles are very common house pets, they are also very common in a lot of wild areas. If you are looking into getting a pet you definitely want to know if it’s poisonous or not. I was also interested in this subject so I did some research, here is what I found out.
Are turtles poisonous? No, turtles are not poisonous. Turtles don’t produce any kind of venom or poison, so they are unable to poison somebody.
It’s very easy to confuse the meaning of poisonous and poisonous since most people use it to describe the same thing. But in reality, they both mean something very different.
A venomous animal will need to bite somebody to inject the venom inside their body, if the venom just makes contact with the skin it won’t do as much harm.
A Poisonous animal doesn’t need to bite somebody to infect them, they just have to make contact with their skin, or any other part to transmit the poison.
Fortunately, turtles are neither poisonous nor venomous. But that doesn’t mean that you can’t get infected or have problems if a turtle bites you.
The Effect of a Turtle Bite
The effects of a turtle bite can drastically differ based on the size and the species of the turtle. So let’s take them one at a time.
Small Turtles
I own a few different species of small turtles, and I can tell you from personal experience that is not that bad to be bitten by one of them. Since they are small they don’t have too much power to their bite so it’s more of a discomfort than actual pain, when they bite you.
The most common places you can get bitten by a turtle are your fingers and your toes. The fingers can get accidentally bitten when you feed them with your hand. And if you keep your turtles in an outdoor enclosure and you walk through it with slippers on you can expect them to bite you thinking that your toes are food. In general pet turtles bite you by mistake, so they won’t hold the bite, they will release you as soon as they realize that you are not food.
Small turtles can also try to bite if they are stressed out, but those bites are usually very short and they don’t hurt that bad.
There is another situation that happens very rarely. If a turtle feels that it’s in grave danger, and it manages to bite you, it won’t let go. And it’s extremely hard to get rid of a turtle that doesn’t want to let go. Those kinds of situations usually end up with a little more than a bruise. Nothing that won’t pass in a couple of weeks, but if you see any blood after the bite you have to go to the doctor to prevent any infections.
If a turtle bites you and even a small drop of blood comes out it means that the skin was perforated, and you have to go to the doctor to treat your wound and prevent any possible infection. Even if turtles are not poisonous or venomous, they can still carry bacterias that are harmful.
But in general, if a small turtle bites you, there are very small chances to get infected by anything. They just don’t have the power needed to perforate the skin.
Bigger turtles on the other hand are a little more dangerous.
Bigger Turtles
There is no exact size that a turtle has to be in this category, but every turtle that is around 14 inches ( 35 centimeters ), or bigger can be easily placed in this category.
Those turtles are not necessarily more aggressive than their smaller counterparts, but they are bigger, and this means that they have a lot more strength in their bite.
If one of those turtles bites you, you will probably need to see a doctor as fast as possible. There are multiple problems that can appear. The first one is that a bite from one of those turtles will definitely perforate your skin and you will be in danger of being infected by bacterias. The second problem is that a bite from one of those turtles could break your finger, and something like that needs a lot more treatment than an infection.
Regardless of the size of the turtle, some species bites are worse than others. One of the most dangerous bites comes from the snapping turtle.
Snapping Turtles
As you can see in the image, snapping turtles have very sharp beaks. One bite from them is guaranteed to be very harmful and to perforate your skin.
A lot of people are telling exaggerated stories about snapping turtles, some say that they can break a broomstick, some say that they can bend metal. But it doesn’t really mate if they can do these things or not, what matters is that you don’t want to get bitten by one of them.
Things would be great if nobody would ever get bitten by anything, but that is not the case. So let’s see what you have to do if you get bitten by a turtle.
What To Do If You Are Bitten by a Turtle
If you are bitten by a small turtle, and there is no blood coming out, and there is no scratch on your hand, you just have to wash your hand. It would be preferable if you could use some antibacterial gel on your hand, but if you don’t have any at your disposal, some soap and water should be just fine.
If you are bitten and there is blood you should wash and disinfect your hand immediately, and then go to the doctor. There is a chance that a bacteria could have entered the wound, and that is not something that you want to leave untreated.
What Not to Do if You Are Bitten by a Turtle
If the turtle bites you and doesn’t want to let go, you don’t want to pull or hit the turtle. If you hit the turtle it will only apply more pressure to the bite and will stay there for longer. If you hit the turtle until it loses its life things will only get worst for you, because at that point the jaws are going to apply even more pressure, and the turtle won’t be able to release it. And in this process, your wounds are only going to get worse. So as I said, even if it seems counterintuitive, the best thing to do is to peacefully wait until the turtle releases the bite.
After a turtle bites you you have to be very careful what you do with your hands, do not put them near your mouth, or near food. Turtles can carry a lot of germs and sometimes even bacterias, so spreading them is not a good idea. Instead, go and wash your hands as soon as possible.
If a turtle bites you because it’s stressed, don’t stress it anymore. Just leave the area and leave it alone. If the turtle that bit you is your turtle, you should let it rest peacefully for some time and come again back later, if you had any business with the turtle. A couple of hours should be enough time for the turtle to calm down.
It’s good to know what to do and what not to do if you get bitten, but even better is to know how to avoid it, so let’s talk about it as well.
How to Avoid Getting Bitten by a Turtle
The best way to protect your fingers is to keep them away, so don’t feed your turtle with your hand, you can just place the food on the ground. Turtles don’t care how they get their food as long as they get it.
If you want to protect your toes then you should hide them, so don’t wear slippers or any kind of footwear that will keep them visible.
If you own a turtle and you don’t want to get bitten then you should make sure that it’s well fed. If a turtle is hungry it will try to eat anything that it’s remotely close to food.
Don’t stress out the turtles, even if they are peaceful by their nature, they will still attack you if they are stressed out and they feel in danger.
If a wild turtle seems very agitated you should try to keep your distance, it can always bite you if you get too close.
And always try to handle them with care, If you properly handle a turtle there is no chance that you will get bitten, so avoid placing your hand anywhere close to its mouth.
Why Turtles Are Not Poisonous
Animals become poisonous or venomous because they have to. Animals that are poisonous or venomous, use the toxins to catch their prey.
Turtles are not big hunters, they usually eat small insects, an occasional fish, and whatever easy prey they find, and they also eat a lot of plants. Most animals that are poisonous or venomous are carnivorous and would starve if they couldn’t catch their prey.
So basically turtles are not poisonous or venomous because they don’t need to.
Related Questions
Are turtles dangerous? No, turtles are very peaceful creatures. But if they are provoked, they can sometimes fight back.
Will you get sick if you own a turtle? No, just because you own a turtle doesn’t mean that you will get sick. But if you want to avoid it, you have to wash your hands after each time that you handle your turtle.
Are turtles dirty? Yes, they are very dirty. For most turtles, you will have to clean the tank at least once every week.
Hello,
If you enjoy the content that we create, please consider saying a "Thank You!" by leaving a tip.
Every little bit can help us tremendously in continuing to create quality content that helps turtle and tortoise owners around the world.
We really appreciate the kindness and support that you show us!