It really didn't seem like enough to go on, but luckily, before I wrote a word, my older son ran into the house yelling about the snapping turtle being caught in the pond. I put my shoes on and went outside to see what he was talking about—and sure enough, there was the turtle that has been living in our pond for the past year or so, caught head first in the overflow pipe. His body was dangling above the water line, helpless and hopeless.
We tried several implements to prod him out—a shovel, a T-post, a hoe—but the suction was too great. Greg finally decided to go barefoot into the water and grab his tail. (This is a good time to mention that we all thought the turtle was dead.) When he moved, as Greg had a hold of his tail, I yelled "He's alive!" which prompted Greg to drop him in the grass immediately. He gaped his maw at us for a few minutes, opened one eye (the kids were sure his eyes had been sucked out and were far past rescue downstream), and seemed to be all right. There's no telling how long he had been hanging there, but we moved him to a suction-free area of the pond, and, as of nightfall, he was still there and breathing. Slowly, but, hey—he's a turtle.
A woman called me today & her husband & herself have lost their home & are unable to take their cats with them.
NEWS FROM SUE:
These two pets have been cheerfully reunited with their owners. 