Have you ever been bit by a snapping turtle?

[longch]

Hey guys,

I'm working for a magazine in mid-Mo. on a story about snapping turtles.

I need to contact some fishermen who have been bit by a turtle or have interesting stories about turtles.

Can you help me out? Email me at [email protected].

[Hookin'&Cookin']

"Get bit by a turtle and it wont let go tell it lighting's " thats what my Mamma told me

[Joedog]

Got bit by a painted turtle when I was a kid cuz I was messing with her when she was laying eggs. Didn't know that's what she was doing at the time.

But never got bit by a snapping turtle. No way no how. Hate them buggers.

[beagle man]

I got bit very traumatic and I can't talk about it

[seejimfish]

I was cat fishing a few years ago a got a common snapper on my line. I had got him up to the bank. The hook was so far in that I couldn't see it in his mouth only the fishing line sticking out so I decided to cut the line off as close as I could to its mouth. I pulled up on the line and reached down to cut the line and about the time I did it felt like something hit my hand. Then the pain set in. I guess in a blink of the eye it nailed me on my left hand right above my pinky finger on the knuckle. I remember jurking my hand back and feeling the turtle hit my chest. At the time I would have said that that thing was hanging off my hand for a life time but really it was less then a second I bet. The first thing I did was to make sure everything was still in its place. No lost fingers no missing hand. Almost nothing at all. I had kind of purple looking marks on my hand and a little spot of blood on the top of my hand. The next day my hand felt like I had smashed it with something and I had some bruises but was in good shape. I think I am lucky to have learned the hard way on a little one. I could only imagine what it could have been like to have been nailed by one of those lake monster's you see on the logs around the lake.

[dfar]

Beagle has Post Turtle Stress Disorder. When you get that you cannot talk about it ever again. My sympathy Beagle....

[set the hook]

I never got bit by a snapper, but had a big one running around lose in our boat. I was about ten years old at the time. We were fishing in the Gasconade River. My Mom, Dad and I were out in a 16 foot johnboat. Didn't have a motor at that time, just paddled. Dad had put out some limb lines and we were running them. Got to one with a BIG snapper on it. The shell was almost the size of a trash can lid. Dad lost his best judgment ... guess he was thinking about all the good turtle soup it would make ... and tried to lift him in the boat. Big mistake. The trotline broke as he was coming over the side. So there we were in a 16 foot johnboat, floating down the Gasconade, the turtle between my Mom and myself, and my Dad. The turtle wasn't at all amused at what was going on. He was making a kind of hissing noise and started coming at my Dad. Dad had a wooden paddle and was shoving it at the turtle. The turtle grabbed the end of the paddle and bit right through it. During all this my Mom and I were trying to paddle to shore to try to get some help. The turtle made a few more lunges at Dad and got tired of being poked in the face. I guess he'd had enough and climbed up over the side of the boat and back into the water. It was an experience I'll never forget ... seeing that turtle bite through a wooden paddle like a toothpick. His neck was about 5 inches across, had huge claws and he really stunk. That turtle taught me a healthy respect for snappers!

[warbird]

call the turtle man he'll fix ya up. he used old thunder to get loose. lol

[MinnowDipper]

Yes very bloody

[Kctrapper]

I didn't actually see a buddy get bit, but was standing 10' away and heard him yelp when he got bit. One of the guys that came to our fish fry picked a snapper up off the road on his way and put it in the bed of his truck. After everyone was done eating, they decided to feed the turtle. I'm not sure whether the French fry was too short, or the turtles neck was too long, but he ended up lifting the turtle out of the truck with his finger tip. The natural light may have slowed his reflexes a bit?