Question: Can I tame my snapper ?

Answer: Yes and no. In a way all snapping turtles, even those born in captivity, will always stay wild animals. Saying this, there are lots of exaples of people who have very tame common snappers. With lots of practice and 'love', as they say, it is possible to have your snapping turtle used to you to such degree that it will eat food from your hand. They are quite intelligent and learn to recognize you. Again, this goes case by case and depends on the personality of the turtle. Some never tame and stay very aggressive. In general, most calm down with age, but those 'with attitude' keep don't really change it when it comes to confrontations. My Mexican snappers are very, and I mean very, aggressive. On the other hand my other common snappers are quite tame, and after recognizing me they even let me to touch their faces (be careful, I don't recommend trying it at home!) Alligator snappers seem to be a lot less interactive in comparison with common snappers. They are basically not interested in leaving their underwater kingdom and they don't tame. So, with work it is possible to tame your common snapper, but only to a certain degree - it will never become a pet like your dog ! To read more about snapping turtle behavior please click here Thanks for asking! Stan

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