Saying Bye Bye to Zeppelin

Mr. Hunt and I said bye to our first ever pet together, Zeppelin the Turtle. He was a great pet.

We first got him when one of our mutual friends decided that they didn't want him anymore. He was as small as a bottle cap. We would let him run around the room and we would watch him sun bath throughout the day. He kept getting bigger and bigger so Mr. Hunt and I got him a bigger tank with a bridge to sun bath on.

The only downside was that he was REALLY smelly if we didn't keep up with his tank. We were poor college kids and we were trying not to have to buy too much stuff for him, but we ended up having to get him a filter so that his water would stay cleaner longer.

So we have had him for some time now...maybe 6 years. His filter had broke 3 times, he didn't like to be bothered or taken out of the tank, Mr. Hunt got Salmonella from him while cleaning him one time (we think), and we kind of started to feel bad for him. Since Mr. Hunt thought he got sick from him, he decided he wasn't going to touch the tank anymore let alone him. This means that I needed to clean him by myself which was way too hard.

So in the end, his lamp and filter was broken, we needed to get him more food, and I needed to clean the tank. With all of this, we decided it was time to let him free.
It was alot harder than I thought it was going to be. We freed him in the neighborhood pond that we walk by with the dogs. We see turtles int here all the time so we thought that was a great place.

As soon as we had him packed up and we were at the pond, so many things were running through my head. The first thing was that this was Mr. Hunt and I's first pet together, but I was also wondering if he was going to be able to make it. Would he be bullied by the other turtles, would he be able to find food on your own since we had been feeding him since he was a baby? All these thoughts were too much and I got sad. Since Mr. Hunt wouldn't touch him, I let him go.

Mr. Hunt and I sat by the edge of the pond to watch him walk in, and then go under water and pop his little head out. Then we said goodbye and went home.

Dear Zeppelin,

I miss you already. Even though you were a pretty boring pet, I still have so many memories with you. Thank you for everything. Thank you for showing Mr. Hunt and I that we could take care of something together. I hope that you like your new home. I hope you are making friends. If you ever see us walking by, please come over and stick your head out so that we know you are safe. I know you didn't like River and Hannah too much, but I think they miss talking to you during the day while we were at work. I know this was the best plan for you, and I am happy now.

P.S. We forgot to tell you not to eat anything attached to a string. Someone is trying to catch a fish, not you. Stay away because those strings will hurt you.

Love,

Mr. Hunt and ME