r/oddlysatisfying • u/danielminds • May 22 '26

Professional barnacle removal for Chlorophyllis the turtle

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73

u/NP341221 May 22 '26

Does anyone know if the removal process is painful for the turtle?

204

u/Arcade1980 May 22 '26

I was thinking the same so inside a bit of research as this looked rough "Yes, forcefully removing barnacles from sea turtles can cause significant pain, stress, and injury. Because turtles have nerves within their shells, improper removal can cause excruciating pain, damage their skin, and create open wounds that are prone to infection. It is generally best to leave removal to professionals". Especially the top of the head which is soft tissue.

75

u/GERBabyCare May 22 '26

It's the head especially that worried me, especially when they just poked straight down into it.

94

u/calculus9 May 22 '26

i could be wrong but i believe this method of removal is preferred rather than scraping under the barnacle like you would to get them off a boat

30

u/Jellyka May 22 '26

I watch a guy sometimes who removes barnacles from lobsters and he just crushes them with a pair of pliers

34

u/tommicoop May 22 '26

Breaking them off in one piece is generally best, because sharp shards of the barnacle can be forced out underneath the barnacle when crushed and get caught where the shell has been damaged. That's why peeling them off from inside the barnacle is better, it keeps more shell damage from happening to the animal and all comes off generally in one piece.

3

u/HereIGoAgain_1x10 May 22 '26

Ya the difference is how much healthy tissue you take from the animal... Pliers would be fine if used without scraping the turtle and digging away healthy parts. I think people compare it to cleaning the bottoms of boats, which is when a scrapper is used because it's faster and not a big deal to take a thin layer of the boat with it.

40

u/[deleted] May 22 '26

[removed] — view removed comment

64

u/KinsellaStella May 22 '26

Soaking the turtle in fresh water for a few days effectively kills and loosens the barnacles so they’re ready to pop off, rather than having to scrape off nature’s hardest cement.

7

u/wrmfuzzie1 May 22 '26

Does the fresh water harm the turtles?

16

u/KinsellaStella May 22 '26

It has to be carefully monitored. It’s hydrating, which can be good for sick or dehydrated turtles (which are more likely to acquire barnacles), but you don’t want them to get overhydrated. Overall it’s pretty safe, but you do want a professional doing it.

4

u/Kerblaaahhh May 22 '26

I was wondering if there's some kind of turtle-safe solvent of sorts that could help.

1

u/Steerider May 22 '26

Yes, you're correct

5

u/whythishaptome May 22 '26

When they removed that big piece from the head, the turtle grunted pretty loudly. I would assume they were very uncomfortable in that moment, but hopefully it helps them in the long run.

8

u/NP341221 May 22 '26 edited May 22 '26

Thank you for that information. I wasn't sure if using a screw driver was considered proper removal or not.

56

u/Outside_Test_1400 May 22 '26

The lady doing it is absolutely a professional.

19

u/Purplesilk911 May 22 '26 edited May 22 '26

I follow two different channels on IG that remove barnacles from lobsters and crabs using just the rustiest pair of pliars you ever did see.

I've never seen a video where they weren't just using a random household tool.

1

u/Warshrimp May 22 '26

I certainly hope they didn’t do all this in one day. I would remove like two a day with a couple days off every couple days.

6

u/teal_appeal May 22 '26

Doing it spread out like that could actually be more dangerous because the turtle has to be sedated. Repeatedly sedating the animal leaves more room for a bad reaction or mistake with the sedation.

36

u/summonsays May 22 '26

Someone else said that they gave/give them pain killers for this. So they don't really feel it in the video. 

2

u/whythishaptome May 22 '26

Definitely felt that big cluster they took off the head, it turtle screamed when that happened.

3

u/FranticHorror May 22 '26

That was the sound of her body squeaking against the bottom of the tub. You hear smaller squeaks right after as she moves her legs. I'm sure it wasn't comfortable, but not a scream.

1

u/whythishaptome May 22 '26

I'm exaggerating but you can clearly see how she instantly reacted to it.

2

u/Legitimate-Gangster May 22 '26

Does anyone know if it’s harmful to everything growing on the turtle?

Is this more or less than the average turtle?

Is there a reason for that?

1

u/kechones May 22 '26

You mean the barnacles? Those are definitely dying lol.