IT'S THAT TIME OF YEAR AGAIN

I've complained a lot on this blog about the weather we have had in Arkansas this year. It started with the flooding in the Winter season, followed by the snow & ice, & lately it has been me moaning about the hot weather & our lack of rain.

Fall is here & the 10-day forecast continues to be sunshine & no rain. The East Coast had flooding last week. Such differences in extremes.

Temperatures ARE starting to subside. I wore my jogging pants this A.M. when I hit the road about 7 o'clock. It was 50 degrees & breezy. I wish I had taken a pair of gloves with me.

Cooler nights have reminded me to bring the tortoises inside. I know they can "tolerate" some lower temperatures, but they are "tropical". I don't want to take any chances.

Friday night after dinner, I went out & started digging around in the leaf litter of the OUTDOOR compound -- there's that word again ... "compound" -- to locate the two tortoises & one semi-aquatic turtle kept outside in the warmer months. Actually, they are easy to find. They are fairly colorful compared to the muted brown colors of the dried bamboo & oak leaves they like to burrow into.

The two Red Footed Tortoises are in the middle & bottom right in the above photo. Obviously, from the yellow color of their heads, these are NOT "Cherry Heads", but the more common variety of Red Foots. They are also a bit dirty from being outside & are not showing their best colors.

The ruler is to show their size. I acquired these tortoises three years ago when they were each about two inches in shell length. They are growing well & in good health.

The turtle on the left is a South American Wood Turtle. (And YES ... there IS a turtle here in North America known as a "Wood Turtle", so all latitudes are covered when it come to turtles named "Wood Turtles".)

The South American Wood Turtle, like the tortoises, is tropical & needs to be inside for the Winter.

Now, before the three reptiles can be brought into the house, like just about everything else coming inside, an "inspection" has to take place, clearance received & approval granted for their entry.

Wobs has provided her "services" & gives the tortoises the approval to enter. I always chuckle at how the cats will investigate everything new & have to view it, smell it & rub their scent on new items. Wobs only did this to the bucket, NOT the tortoises. She has her limits.

Once inside, I offered the Red Foots an evening "snack" of lettuce, where they were joined by the Black Mountain Tortoises.

NOTE: I feed very little plain lettuce to my tortoises. There is little-to-no nutritional value in lettuce, & it is fed only as a "treat", since the tortoises do like it.

Bringing in the tortoises is the first of many tasks dedicated to combating the coming colder weather against the tropical animals & plants I have.

It's that time of year again.