SHELL OF A TOUGH TIME FOR TERRY

THIS is one turtle who definitely won’t be coming out of his shell.

Nicknamed Terry by staff at Currumbin Wildlife Hospital, the saw-shelled turtle has just undergone three rounds of surgery to reattach his shell after he was run over by a car.

Amazingly, Dr Michael Pyne, the hospital’s chief vet, said Terry should make a full recovery after surgeons used 10 sewing hooks and surgical wire to practically sew his shell back together.

“He’s on the road to recovery,” he said.

“It’s amazing how good the shells are at protecting the internal organs.”

Terry will still need to recover at the wildlife hospital for the next two or three months before he is returned to the wild.

There will be no pool parties with other turtles though: saw-shelled turtles are notoriously anti-social.

“They like their own space,” said Dr Pyne.

Picture: NIGEL HALLETT Terry the saw-shelled turtle is recovering after surgery to repair his shatttered shell.

This X-ray reveals the hardware needed to patch up Terry.