Animal Protection Police

ANIMAL PROTECTION POLICE OFFICERS

A SNAPPING GOOD SAVE FREE TO FLY

Animal Protection Police (APP) received a call about a large turtle that was repeatedly crossing the road in a residential area of Alexandria. Much to their surprise, it was a 65-pound alligator snapping turtle. Most likely a captivebred turtle released into the wild, it was safely captured by APP and temporarily taken to the Fairfax County Animal Shelter. The turtle eventually found a new home at the Virginia Zoo in Norfolk! A beautiful bald eagle was released back into the wild at Burke Lake in January! In December 2019, Police Officer First Class Tom Dawson and Animal Protection Police Officers noticed the bird was hurt and quickly captured it to see how they could help. The eagle was taken to our animal shelter and stayed under the care of a veterinarian until it was well enough to be released back into the wild. The eagle’s release was quite the community event!