WEST HILLS : More Ailing Turtles Expected to Die

Several dozen more turtles rescued from the back of a van in a West Hills apartment complex are expected to die, although most of the 950 surviving reptiles are recovering nicely at an animal shelter in Los Angeles, authorities said Wednesday.

“Some are not responding to medication and they are very sick,” said Rose Channer, a spokeswoman for the Los Angeles Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals/Southern California Humane Society.

Worried and suspicious neighbors last Friday asked two workmen on the premises to check out the foul smell coming from a parked white van. The workers opened the unlocked vehicle and discovered about 1,000 turtles packed in burlap sacks.

All the turtles are terrapin or fresh water pond turtles and none are endangered species, Channer said

The healthy turtles are being housed in 25 children’s wading pools with heat lamps to keep them warm. There are cinder blocks placed in the 18-inch deep pools so they can get out of the water, Channer said.

More than half of about 400 calls the animal rights group has received since Monday were from people who wanted to donate money to buy food and medicine for the turtles, said Channer, who estimated the cost for caring for the reptiles at about $1,700 each day.

“We were not prepared to feed 1,000 turtles and buy special medications,” Channer said. “At this point, we don’t need items because we purchased them. But we still need financial help.”

Those who wish to adopt a turtle or two will have to wait because the reptiles are considered evidence in an ongoing SPCA investigation that is expected to last a few more weeks, Channer said.

However, the society is taking names and phone numbers of people who want to adopt, and will call them later if turtles become available.