Sabine's Most Memorable Moment of 2019

My husband was taking the huskies on a walk. Just 30 minutes later he came back, handing me a little bundle. It was a box turtle with a severely injured and infected eye, and generally in bad shape. He said it walked right into the sidewalk in front of him. I grew up with a little turtle companion, so he figured I'd know what to do.

I prepped a box for the little one and started with eye drops to treat the infection.

-- Warning - sort of graphic content --

About 30 minutes later, when trying to have a better look at the injured eye, something struck me as a little odd. Then I saw a little maggot on the box floor. I knew then what was going on and I remember taking a big ole breath (a la "alright, here we go") and picked up the turtle to take a closer look. No doubt, something traumatic had happened to the eye. What had initially looked like an infection, was not really an infection at this point. The entire eye socket was filled with neatly stacked maggots.

So, I grabbed a pair of tweezers, some colloidal silver... and took another deep breath.

The first maggot I fished out was about 4mm long and a chubby little guy. I was so grossed out, I flung the thing across the room (the maggot, not the turtle!). I re-focused, and went after the next maggot. After the first one, I had no problems doing it... and I had to do this a whopping 12 more times. There were a total of 13 maggots in this tiny eye socket. The last two I had to really go in there. I have NO IDEA how they all had fit in there but I have no doubt that turtle had been going mad over the pain and pressure. It actually stayed completely still while I was working on it.

After the eye was clear, I treated it. About two hours later, every time I thought about it, I got ever so slightly nauseous! 

After two weeks, the eye had sealed shut and the turtle was lively and very eager to GET OUT! So, we took it back to the area where my husband had found it. It marched right into the woods.

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So, why did I end up using this story for the basis of "my brand? "

Turtles are among my most favorite of animals. With their internal compass, they are determined to get to where they know they need to be. Although not the physically fastest of creatures, they are stubborn and work hard. And even serious hurdles (like losing an eye) they will work to overcome. They are unstoppable in their spirit and determination. I couldn't think of anything more inspiring than that.