Gopher Tortoise Alliance

06/06/2026

Patient Release: Bubbles 🎉🐢

This Gopher Tortoise (Bubbles) was brought to us by a caring citizen who saw her get hit by a car. Not only was her shell fractured, she also had a broken leg.

Oftentimes with this level of injury, the tortoise may face euthanasia. However, we were able to triage and get her to our mentor at Central Florida Wildlife Center quickly where she performed a late night shell repair. Luckily the shell did its job protecting the vital organs!

We weren’t sure how things would turn out for Bubbles but we were happy to see her healing and getting better. And this past week, she was finally ready for release!! 🥳 we fitted her with a tracker and sent her on her way.

This is what can happen when a caring person makes the time to help an animal. By getting her to us instead of just passing by, the finder saved her life and the lives of the other tortoises she may create!

05/23/2026

WATCH OUT FOR TURTLES ON THE ROAD PEOPLE! 🐢🚗🚙

Turtles and tortoises are crossing roads more frequently now because they are looking for spots to lay their eggs!

Please keep your eyes out on the road and if you see one and can pull over SAFELY, you can pick it up and take it across the road in the direction it was going.

If you see an injured tortoise or turtle, get it into a box or bin and contact us right away!

Tis the season to keep a box in your car for this reason!

05/23/2026

05/21/2026

Patient Intake:
This is new gopher tortoise patient, Tangle.

Tangle is a great reminder to pick up your trash and any other litter that you see lying around in nature. You may save an animal by doing so!

This tortoise was found by a Good Samaritan who noticed she was tied up in some twine. He immediately removed the twine and noticed that her leg was swollen and she wasn’t using it normally. There was a visible injury where the twine had been on her leg. He contacted Wild Fl Rescue who transported the tortoise to us for care.

We gave her some pain relief and got her to our rehab mentor Amanda Ebenhack at Central Florida Wildlife Center for assessment. We were thrilled to see that she is able to move her leg and were hopeful that her mobility will improve.

Sometimes cases like this lead to amputations if the nerves and blood flow to the leg are overly damaged. In this case, we are hoping that doesn’t happen!

Tangle will receive meds, laser therapy and physical therapy in our care to help get her leg functioning. We will reassess in a couple weeks!

05/19/2026

Patient release! 🥳
This little mud turtle was chewed on by a dog but luckily the owner saved it and got it to us for treatment. She’s been in our care recovering and is finally ready to be on her way! Once she got her bearings she wasted no time and was following the little minnows.

Turtle and tortoise releases are never as fast or flashy as bird or mammal releases, but we still enjoy them very much and hope you do too!! 🥰

05/18/2026

Patient Update:
This Gopher Tortoise was brought to us by WILD Florida Rescue as a dog bite victim. She’s been recovering from her injuries and has progressed to enjoying supervised outdoor time. We never know what the future holds but we are hopeful she can return to her home territory!

05/15/2026

Ambassador gopher tortoise enclosure upgrade! Artificial burrow added. Due to a permanent disability this tortoise cannot dig a proper burrow, so his host caretakers made him an artificial one. A burrow is essential to the gopher tortoises survival in the wild. It protects them from predators, provides shelter from the elements and helps them regulate their body temperate and humidity. FWC Permit LSSC-26-00010

05/12/2026

We need our community’s help!

Our outside temps are officially hitting the 90’s and it’s only May 12th! We need to get an ac unit in the clinic along with the other furnishings to make it functional. We are already getting daily calls about turtles and tortoises that need help!

We still need:
-Electricity ($2300)
-Light fixtures ($75-150?)
-Ac unit ($500 unit, $500 install)
-Sink ($60-120)
-Small water heater ($200-300)
-Cabinets ($250-500?)
-Countertop ($100-400?)
-Table/island ($200-400?)
-mini fridge with freezer ($150-250)

Please visit our website gophertortoisealliance.org to view our Amazon wishlist or donate funds directly so we can purchase needed items.

And thank you to Mark, Steve and Mojo for their recent donations! 🐢❤️

If any local businesses have any of these items they would like to donate to us (new or used) or services to provide for a discounted rate we would greatly appreciate any help we can get!

Thank you to everyone who continues to support us in helping gopher tortoises get back to the wild! 🐢🙏🏻❤️

05/08/2026

Ugh, too many dog chew injuries! 😣 we understand how easily this can happen. Please try to keep an eye on your dogs and if they do get ahold of a tortoise, get it to a wildlife rehabber, even if the wounds don’t look bloody, they can be deep. Definitely needs an exam from a rehabber.

And keep in mind that each accident like this takes months of care and money spent on medications, supplies and even x-rays and testing when needed. We provide these services with support from donors and oftentimes from our own pockets. Every little bit helps!

Thanks to WILD Florida Rescue for getting this guy to us.

05/07/2026