Welcome to Chelonian Ranch
*NOTICE: Although Chelonian Ranch becomes a permanent residence for turtles and tortoises, the ranch also rehabilitates sick and injured turtles as well. Due to not only insurance, the need for care, quarantine, and serene healing in a stress free environment for this incredible species, we do not allow visitors to our ranch.*
Chelonian Ranch is organized and operated exclusively for charitable purposes in accordance with Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code. More specifically, our organization’s purposes are to rescue, rehabilitate, and foster turtles and tortoises that are either sick, unwanted or in need of a home, while educating the public in the proper care of turtles and tortoises.
What is a Chelonian?
Pronounced [ki-lō-nē-uhn]
A reptile of the order Testudines (formerly Chelonia); a turtle, terrapin, or tortoise.
Chelonians lack teeth and have a shell, usually hard, that protects the body and consists of bony plates fused to the vertebrae and ribs. Unlike all other living reptiles, the skulls of chelonians lack temporal openings, which is characteristic of the earliest known reptiles (called anapsids). Chelonians evolved during the late Permian or Triassic Period and have changed little since.
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