Susan M. Tellem, RN, BSM
 
When Peter Mitchell* bought a quarter-size green turtle from a Los Angeles street vendor for his young son Danny, he had no idea he was bringing home a tiny package of life that packed a big wallop of a disease.  Within days, Danny ended up in the ICU with severe vomiting, lethargy and fever.  He almost died from Salmonella. An infant in New York City, admitted to the hospital with vomiting, chills and fever also was diagnosed with Salmonella.  Although there were no reptiles in the child’s household, her babysitter passed along Salmonella from her pet iguana. In Texas, an HIV positive, 45 year old pet store employee who routinely handled reptiles, was treated for severe Salmonella sepsis (a serious illness that results when Salmonella enters the blood stream).   
 
All over America, men and women, adults and kids are unknowingly trading, buying and giving “the gift” of Salmonella, a infection that can kill.  Reptiles, like iguanas and water turtles are purchased at pet stores, as well as *  not his real namefrom the black market, private reptile breeders and swap meets.  Many reptile sellers do not post warnings about the dangers of Salmonella even though state and federal laws require it.
 
What is Salmonella?
 
According to the New York Department of Health, Salmonella is “a bacterial infection that generally infects the intestinal tract and occasionally the blood stream.  Symptoms include mild to severe diarrhea, fever and occasionally vomiting.  Symptoms generally appear one to three days after exposure.  It is spread by eating or drinking contaminated food or by contact with infected people, animals and reptiles.”
 
Reptiles are more popular than ever.  According to the Pet Industry Joint Advisory Council, there are between seven and eight million pet reptiles owned in about three percent of America’s households.  Reptile ownership is on the increase. U.S. Fish and Wildlife reports while about 27,000 iguanas were imported in 1986, the figure increased to almost 800,000 in 1993. Upwards of 80 percent of the imported iguanas carry Salmonella, according to Richard Evans, DVM, Chief of Veterinary Services, Veterinary Public Health, Orange County (Calif.) Health Agency.  “If you bought an iguana, you bought the wrong pet,” he says emphatically.  “There is no known treatment for Salmonella in the iguana (or turtle).  Even if you treat the Salmonella in your pet, it returns.” 
 
While most healthy adult owners show no symptoms of Salmonella even if they are infected, Dr. Evans says children under five, pregnant women and the elderly as well as those whose immune systems are compromised such as those with AIDS, kidney transplants or people undergoing treatment for cancer are at risk of serious illness or even death from Salmonella infection.Dr. Evans warns teachers that reptiles (and other animals like chicks that also carry Salmonella) are not appropriate for classrooms.  “Show them pictures,” he says. 
 
A teacher is a sitting duck for a lawsuit should any of the children in the classroom get infected.  “Teachers know the risks, so if a parent were to sue for a million dollars (much more if the child dies), the parent will win.”  It is not worth the risk he says.
 
Turtle Invasion
 
During the 1970s, millions of tiny baby turtles were sold throughout the United States as pets. By the mid-70s, a quarter of a million children and infants were diagnosed as having turtle-associated Salmonella.  In 1975, the Food & Drug Administration, in an effort to stop the problem, prohibited the sale of any turtles under four inches in length.  This law still stands but is poorly enforced.
 
According to American Tortoise Rescue (ATR), Los Angeles, and the New York Turtle and Tortoise Society, throughout the country, tiny turtles called red-eared sliders are being sold by vendors on street corners, in shopping malls, in front of museums and even at pet stores.  Typically ranging in price from $2 to $10, turtles imported from Mexico and harvested from Louisiana are often infected with Salmonella.  “Buyers tell us that none of the black market vendors ever issued a health warning with the sale of the turtles,” says Marshall Thompson, co-founder of ATR.
 
Unsupervised children are frequently at risk with these small turtles because they can easily put them in their mouths.  “We’ve been in pet stores where illegal turtles were for sale,” says Thompson.  “As we watched, children under five fished out the turtles from the tank where they were for sale and never washed their hands afterward.”
 
Protect Yourself
 
According to national reptile specialist, Walter Rosskopf, DVM, who runs the Avian & Exotic Animal Hospital in Hawthorne, Calif. “Reptiles can be kept by responsible people who take strict precautions.”  He is opposed to children owning reptiles because of the health hazards.Says Dr. Rosskopf, “Salmonella, in my experience, is seen most commonly in water turtles, boa constrictors and iguanas.  The infected reptile frequently shows no symptoms, and culturing stools to identify Salmonella is a hit and miss proposition.” 
 
Dr. Rosskopf gives good advice for those who currently have reptiles as pets or plan to purchase one. 
 

• Wash your hands with hot, soapy water (preferably antibacterial soap) after handling the pet, its cage or cage accessories.

• Wear gloves and face protection when cleaning a cage or changing the water in a tank, pool or pond.

• Always supervise and minimize a child’s handling of a reptile.

• House reptiles away from the kitchen, dining room and food preparation areas.

• Keep other pets away from reptiles, including their cages and water bowls.

• Make regular reptile veterinary visits and have laboratory screening tests done.

• Do not us the bathroom sink or shower as a reptile soaking area.

• Do not eat, drink or smoke while handling the reptile or cleaning its environment.

• If your reptile injures you, clean the wound thoroughly and consult a physician.  Reptile injuries can become easily infected.

 
Although it might be tempting, Dr. Rosskopf also warns, “Do not kiss your reptile.” 
 
Want to Know More?
The Centers for Disease Control in Atlanta publishes a free brochure on Salmonella.  Write to CDC, MMWR MS (C-08), Atlanta, GA 30333.
 
For free information on Salmonella, contact American Tortoise Rescue at info@tortoise.com. 

About the author:  Susan Tellem is a registered nurse and executive director of American Tortoise Rescue in Los Angeles.  She founded the nonprofit sanctuary with her husband, Marshall Thompson, in 1994.  Together, they rescue and rehabilitate all species of turtles and tortoise.  Neither has ever had Salmonella.

For your fact checking: 
Richard Evans, DVM                  714-935-6931
Walter Rosskopf, DVM              310-679-0693
Marshall Thompson                   213-934-0336
Allen Salzberg                          718-275-2190

African Tortoises Have Very Special Needs

The African Spurred known as a sulcata is a herbivorous tortoise, thus a high fiber intake of grasses, hay, weeds or roughage should form the bulk of its diet. Wild tortoise feces are generally well compacted, well formed, and very high in varied grass content. In captivity a variety of vegetables and some fruit can be offered. Although sulcata  will eat animal protein, it should be avoided as it will cause carapace deformity. It should be noted that excessive quantities of beans, bean sprouts, peas and similar rich protein rich vegetables can lead to scute pyramiding. An overall high protein diet will cause rapid growth, kidney failure and a shortened life span. Other cautions are excessive goitrogenic vegetables such as broccoli, brussel sprouts, kale and varieties of cabbage which can lead to goiter and hypothyroidism. Feeding too many greens high in calcium oxalate such as parsley, spinach, collards and carrots can bind calcium which could lead to disfiguring and deadly metabolic bone disease (pictured at the end).
 
The mixed green-leaf vegetable base should comprise > 90% of the dietwhich includes course mixed grasses such as grass hay (lower in protein), sow thistle, clover, dandelion, edible flowers, dark green lettuce such as romaine, (no iceberg), escarole, endive, chard, squash, pumpkin, corn, and turnip greens. Cactus paddles are great as are prickly pears (the fruit).
 
A lack of dietary fiber or roughage will lead to diarrhea as will feeding fruit which should be avoided. Cucumber, zucchini, red and green sweet peppers may also be included. Try to provide a wide range of suitable foods as possible, avoiding too much of the right type or staple food as tortoises can become addicted. To summarize, the ideal diet for herbivorous tortoises should be:
 
Water should be available at all times either in clay saucers or metal backing pans.
For the first year sulcatas should be fed daily,thereafter 3 times weekly.Remembering this tortoise comes from the sub-Sahara where habitat is semi-desert and where food is not always plentiful. Overfeeding these enormous eaters in captivity will cause problems.
 
Health
A healthy tortoise will have good weight, muscular vigor, and a good withdrawal response when a hind limb is gently pulled. The eyes should be wide open when awake, slightly rounded cheeks, and a bilaterally symmetrical head. The vent area or cloaca at the base of the tail should be flush, not swollen or crusty and without smears of watery feces. If a tortoise appears healthy but has watery feces it could be a sign of a parasitic disease and should be checked and treated. A nasal discharge and watery eyes may be a sign of a respiratory infection. Gaping and forced exhalation are common symptoms of pneumonia. Such cases require antibiotic therapy, warmer temperatures and possible hand feeding in the case of lethargic or anorexic animals.
 
Breeding
Don’t!!!!!!!  We do not recommend breeding as there is an enormous number of sulcatas for adoption.  Sulcatas are prolific breeders in captivity with males reaching sexual maturity at about 14 inches (35 cm.). Aggressive behavior may take place with repeated ramming by the males sometimes ending up in bloody limbs and heads. In southern California breeding usually occurs during hot days and months of the year with egg-laying occurring during the following late winter or spring. 
This is a good time to say stick with one sulcata – they fight, breed and overall destroy the environment as they get bigger.  One is enough and they won’t get lonely.  Trust us.
 
Hatchlings
Hatchlings measure approximately 45-50 mm long, weigh between 25-30 grams, and are a uniform pale yellow-ivory color. However, much darker examples may be encountered. The scutes have narrow brown borders with a serrated periphery of the carapace. When housing hatchlings, the enclosure must have a warm side and a cool side for thermoregulation with a provision for UVB producing fluorescent lights. Temperatures are much the same as explained earlier or slightly on the warmer side. Growing tortoises, when not provided with enough heat and fed excessive calcium, vitamin D3, and or protein, may develop deformed shells. This disproportionate growth may be linked to protein availability in relation to calciumandD3, but temperature is now considered a critical factor in this syndrome.
 
Offering a balanced diet and providing a heat source are main factors for successfully raising healthy tortoises. Diet is similar to that of adults. Chop the food into bite-size pieces, approximately the size of the head.
 
Clean water should be made available at all times. Young individualsshouldbe soaked at least once a week for 15 minutes in a shallow bath of warm water to prevent dehydration.  This will also encourage the elimination of waste products.
 
Sulcatas come from some of the Sahel, the hottest, driest area in Africa. Some regions may not get rain for years. To make the most of available moisture, their skin is resistant to fluid loss but, when exposed to moisture, may become highly permeable. Towards this end, they will excavate pallets or burrows in the ground to get to areas with higher moisture levels; in the wild, they may spend the hottest part of the day in these microhabitats. Burrows may average 30 inches in depth; some dig tunnel systems extending 10 feet or more underground. Sulcatas are, like most turtles and tortoises native to dry areas, extremely efficient in their use of water. A sulcata may urinate just 0.64 ml a day, significantly less than their spur-thighed cousins living in the relatively lush Mediterranean countries who may urinate 1-2 ml a day. A danger, then, in captivity is that too much water may be given or made accessible which may lead to health problems including skin and shell infections and kidney problems.
 
In captivity, a similarly hot and dry environment must be provided year round. Unlike the California desert tortoises, the sulcatas do not hibernate. While they can tolerate some surprisingly low temperatures, they cannot be allowed to get both chilled and wet or kept outdoors in chill, damp weather.
 
Housing
Daytime temperatures during much of the year should range from 85-105 F (29-40 C) during the day. At night, temperatures can drop into the 70s F (21-26 C) in their enclosure. They must be dry. Provisions must be made to house them safely during rainy weather and in places where the nights are cold and/or damp.
 
Outdoors
Sulcatas can be housed outdoors only if they are provided dry, heated housing into which they will retire at night and during inclement weather. If they will not come out and go in on their own, they will have to be directed or physically moved. (Note that while this may not be a problem when the tortoises weigh less than 25 pounds or so, it can become quite problematic when they weigh 90 pounds or more.) In sufficiently dry areas that are protected from predators and humans, sulcatas may be kept outdoors at night as well, with living in-ground trees and shrubs providing the shelter over their pallets they require. We recommend that fencing surrounding the compound be solid – several layers of concrete blocks do the trick: if the sulcatas can see through it, they will try to plow through or burrow under it.
 
A dog house or one you build yourself (see picture below) make suitable houses for sulcatas. They must be raised up off the ground and must be supplied with heat during colder weather. A wide ramp must be constructed for them to move easily in and out. Make a wood door that slides off to cover the opening. It will also help insulate the house by reducing heat loss. During the winter months, we use radiant heat panels screwed into the roof as overhead heat suspended from the ceiling of the house and safely out of reach of the tortoise. One or more Kane heat pads or pig blankets - rigid heating pads made for pigs to lie upon - can be used inside on the floor. Both of these heating elements can be purchased from www.beanfarm.com.  Neither heat lamps or ceramic lamps should ever be used as they cause fires easily and since this happens frequently, we insist that you never consider them.
 
A shallow water bowl – we use a large aluminum baking pan from a kitchen store - , with sides low enough for the tortoise to reach into, should be available at all times if there is no wallow available. Tortoises do not swim, they sink. You need to make sure they can easily access the water but that it is not any deeper than the tortoise's bridge, the section of shell that joins the carapace (top shell) and plastron (bottom shell). A bowl or flowerpot saucer (plastic or glazed ceramic) may be fine for a larger tortoise; it may need to be sunk slightly into the substrate for smaller tortoises. Be prepared to refresh daily and clean frequently.
 
A note on predators and other harmful species
Animals such as raccoons or coyotes may prey upon sleeping tortoises. Dogs may harm tortoises just by being inquisitive or playful...small tortoises look, smell and taste too enticing to not be a chew toy! Tortoises kept in front and easily accessible side yards are enticing to unscrupulous members of a two legged species: many tortoises have been spirited out of their yards by humans. Make sure all fencing is secure, both to prevent the tortoise from barging through it or digging under it, and to prevent unwanted visitors from coming in or accidentally letting them out.   We use electric fencing throughout the rescue.
 
Indoors
Given the tremendous amount of room these tortoises need to roam, maintaining them inside year round is not advised. Temporary indoor housing, as for hatchlings (see section on hatchlings below), sick individuals or during inclement weather, can be set up. Such indoor housing must include both basking and cooler retreat areas, and a den box or trash can on its side in which to burrow. An area for feeding and a shallow water dish must also be provided. Ultraviolet B lighting must be provided as well as suitable temperature ranges during both the day (80 F (27 C) with a basking area (100 F (39C)) and turn off all lights at night but keep temps at (72 F (22 C)).
 
Behavior
Sulcatas like to move around and are very strong -- they must have a large area in which to freely and widely roam. Sulcatas also need to burrow away from the heat and do so by retreating to their pallets or into muddy wallows where they will stay for hours, flipping cool mud up onto their backs. When temperatures exceed 104 F (40 C), they will begin to salivate heavily, smearing the saliva on their forearms to help cool themselves down.
 
Whether housed indoors or out, Sulcatas roam about and are voracious eaters. Like many tortoises, they are also climbers. Care must be taken to assure they are not given the opportunity to climb things that are too steep resulting in their toppling over. If they flip onto their backs and are not able to right themselves, they may die of hyperthermia if they do it during the hottest part of the day. They may also choke or drown on their own vomit if they panic. They may lose precious water by voiding urates and thus become seriously dehydrated. Suffocation is also a possibility if they are left upside down too long as their lungs, which are near the top of their carapace, are compressed by the weight of their internal organs.
 
Keep dangerous objects out of their area. Steps, dogs, raccoons and children are among some of the dangers that must be guarded against. So too human and animal hair, pesticides and herbicides, small plastic, glass and metal toys, and toxic plants. Sulcatas are voracious, if not always smart, eaters and will ingest anything small enough and colorful enough. That includes painted toenails.
 
Provide variety and security.  Provide a cluster of sturdy, low growing plants they can crowd in amongst. Provide an interesting terrain by leaving (or building) some low hummocks, smooth rocks, pieces of wood, clumps of weeds and edible plants.
 
Below is the house we built for our sulcatas.  It is fireproof and almost indestructible.  We built a cinderblock and rebar house with a removable roof for cleaning and a removable door for closing as well as a wind barrier.  The roof has a radiant heat panel screwed into the underside for heat from above and the floor is made up of pig blankets (made for pigs so they can take the weight) called Kane heat pads – both are available from www.beanfarm.com. Never use any lights – they cause fires.  Never cover the pig blankets with any substrate or hay.
 
Check out this Buzzfeed article – https://www.buzzfeed.com/catferguson/a-reptile-dysfunction?utm_term=.wlK66wDRwr#.vr800DxaDG – tells it like it is.
About Us
American Tortoise Rescue is a nonprofit founded in 1990 for the protection of all species of turtles and tortoises. We have rescued more than 4,000 since our inception. Foundlings that cannot be adopted because of ill health remain in the care of ATR for the remainder of their lives. Celebrate World Turtle Day every year on May 23rd!
 
Contactsamerican tortoise rescue, 30745 PCH, #243 Malibu, CA 90265
http://www.tortoise.com info@tortoise.com www.worldturtleday.org
​

Turtle and Tortoises Have Different Feeding Needs

While there are many variations on how to feed turtles and tortoises depending on the age and species, there are some basic rules that caretakers must observe in order to have healthy animals. It is amazing, but I find that many people do not even try to find out what the animal needs, but instead drops a piece of lettuce in front of it hoping that will suffice.  How that myth got perpetrated is beyond us, but these little guys take a lot more care to live out their 100 years.

The basic rule of thumb is turtles are carnivores and tortoises are vegetarians. Feed what they would find in the wild, i.e., would a turtle find dog food or hot dogs in the wild? Highly unusual! Would a tortoise find tofu or rice cakes in the wild? No!

Turtles
In general, turtles prefer live food. In the wild, they like to hunt ive worms, snails, rolly poly bugs and creepy crawlies. All taste delicious to a turtle. 

In captivity, we must provide live food for our turtles. Even if you are a vegetarian or are squeamish, you owe it to this little wild animal to provide healthy food. At the rescue, we do two things: we hunt down snails that have never been exposed to snail bait or pesticides. If you are not sure, keep the snails in a bucket with a mesh lid and feed them peanut butter for a few days. If they are not dead they are ok to feed to your turtles. 

More practically, we purchase superworms for the adult turtles and mealworms for the babies. We purchase 3000 superworms at a time, but you can buy containers of them at your local pet store. Feed as many as they can eat per sitting….sometimes as many as 12 – 15. Then do not feed again for a few days. Turtles also like grpapes, strawberries and greens like romaine or dandelion greens. Never feed your turtle cat food or dog food. It has too much protein and can cause long term damage. 

Water turtles are a different story. They can only eat under water. While they enjoy some of the above, the best diet is a prepared turtle food like Reptomin. Feed once every other day. Supplement the diet with live goldfish called feeder fish. These offer calcium because of their small bones. Some people say feeder fish are bad - we have water turtles that are more than 35 years old and they are fine. Of course, when they hibernate, turtles do not eat for three to six months.

Tortoises
Tortoises, by and large, are vegetarians. Most are green eaters (desert tortoises), but some can tolerate fruit (redfoots). Once you know what kind of a tortoise you have, you will be able to determine what is best.

In the wild, tortoises do not get the fancy foods that we feed them. Regular feeding can cause what we call a pyramided shell – which is bumpy and unattractive (lack of sun is also a reason). For that reason, we recommend feeding every other day or every third day. This will make for an angry but healthier tortoise.

Feed once a day in the morning. Do not feed spoiled food as they can get maggots and internal worms. Place the food on newspaper so that it can be tossed easily and so that they will not eat dirt or sand that can cause stones. We only feed grass hay (sulcatas usually only start eating after they move past the juvenile phase), dark leafy greens, dandelion greens (from your garden or the store), dark romaine and once in a while watermelon. Pumpkins are great during the fall when they are abundant. It’s thought that pumpkins are natural dewormers.

Do not feed fruit to a desert tortoise or sulcata or other desert type tortoises. They are not programmed for it, and it can make then sick and give them diarrhea. In general tortoise poops are solid and damp. When in doubt peruse some web sites. Good ones include tortoise.com (ours), turtlehomes.org and tortoisetrust.org.

Any food questions? For more information, e-mail American Tortoise Rescue at info@tortoise.com or visit www.tortoise.com, Facebook at www.facebook.com/americantortoiserescue or on twitter @tortoiserescue

About Us
American Tortoise Rescue is a nonprofit founded in 1990 for the protection of all species of turtles and tortoises. We have rescued more than 4,000 since our inception. Foundlings that cannot be adopted because of ill health remain at the sanctuary for the remainder of their lives. ATR acts as a clearinghouse for information about turtle care. We work to abolish “live market” slaughter of turtles in the US and the cruel importation and exploitation of a variety of species for food or the pet trade.

20 Years of Dying and Dead Turtles and Frogs Is Enough

American Tortoise Rescue spent years trying to get California Fish & Wildlife to stop importing non-native turtles and frogs into California for the Asian live food markets around the state, to no avail. Every time we were close, Asian politicians would storm the governor’s office or just go after the Fish &Game commissioners who would get cold feet. They claim it is a matter of tradition. So was binding feet and shark fin soup, both outlawed here. Here’s a summary written by my colleague at Action for Animals – Eric Mills. He, Madeline Bernstein at spcaLA and our nonprofit American Tortoise Rescue are the main entities that have been working against the practice for 20 years. When will it stop?

After 20 years of vigorous debate, in 2010 the Commission twice voted unanimously (5:0) to ban the importation of live frogs and turtles for human consumption, receiving more than 3,000 letters of support from various environmental and animal protection organizations and several state legislators.  Former Secretary of Resources Huey Johnson wrote twice.

In a bizarre twist of politics and disregard for our natural resources, then-director of the Dept., John McCammon, announced that he would continue issuing the import permits on a month-to-month basis. Challenged by an irate Commission, then-DFW deputy director SonkeMastrup responded, "The Director acts at the pleasure of the Governor."  So much for the democratic process. Makes one wonder what the Governor's "pleasure" truly is. Here's an example of racial, cultural and financial politics at its worse, all at the expense of our native wildlife. The Department absolutely has the authority to stop this harmful commerce.  That's why they are called permits . 

California annually imports some two million non-native American bullfrogs for food. Most are commercially-raised in Taiwan. Plus an estimated 300,000 to 400,000 nonnative freshwater turtles, are all taken from the wild, depleting local populations in other states and Mexico: mostly red-eared sliders and various softshell species, some recommended for CITES Appendix II protection.

More than three dozen necropsies have shown that all the market frogs and turtles are diseased and/or parasitized, though it is illegal to sell such products for human consumption. Where's the Health Department?  Fish & Wildlife's own rules (California Code 236) require that any such shipments be quarantined, destroyed or sent back to point-of-origin, all at the expense of the importer, not the department. There is near zero enforcement, not for lack of funding or manpower, but for lack of will.   

Most anyone can readily buy these animals alive from the markets, though such sales are illegal. When released into local waters (also illegal), the exotics prey upon and displace the natives. Worse yet, the majority of the bullfrogs test positive for the deadly chytrid fungus, Batrachochytriumdendrobatidis (Bd), which has caused the extinction of 200+ frog and other amphibian species worldwide in recent years.  The bullfrogs generally do not succumb to the disease, but they certainly do disperse it, putting our native wildlife in grave danger. Easy fix - stop the imports. The European Union allows the importation of only frozen frogs parts for human consumption. The U.S. should follow suit.

The Department issued its own "White Paper" in November 2014, suggesting that a total important ban was the most viable solution to the bullfrog problem, yet has failed to act. In that same year, with only three of the five members present, Commissioner Richard Rogers made a motion, seconded by Commissioner Jim Kellogg, that the issue be sent to the State Legislature for resolution, over the vehement protest of Commission president Mike Sutton. Reminds me of a quote from the late political pundit Molly Ivins: "For anyone to enjoy the state legislature, you need only a strong stomach and a complete insensitivity to the needs of the people." This problem is a matter for the Department, not the State Legislature.

About Us
American Tortoise Rescue is a nonprofit founded in 1990 for the protection of all species of turtles and tortoises. We have rescued more than 4,000 since our inception. Foundlings that cannot be adopted because of ill health remain in the care of ATR for the remainder of their lives. ATR acts as a clearinghouse for information about turtle care. We work to abolish “live market” slaughter of turtles in the US, the sale of reptiles on sites like Craig’s List and the cruel importation and exploitation of a variety of species. Celebrate World Turtle Day every year on May 23rd!
 
Contacts
american tortoise rescue
30745 PCH, #243 Malibu, CA 90265
http://www.tortoise.cominfo@tortoise.comwww.worldturtleday.org
Facebook: American Tortoise Rescue and World Turtle Day
Twitter @tortoiserescue
YouTube AmericanTortRescue
Instagram: TortoiseRescue
​
Tweet These Quick facts

• Asian Live Food Markets sell contaminated turtles and frogs.
• 300,000 to 400,000 nonnative freshwater turtles are taken from the wild annually.
• California annually imports some two million non-native American bullfrogs for food.