Having dozens of reptile news stories stream into my e-mail daily and having posted them to my web sites for years, you can trust me when I tell you that an absurd number of illegal drug users and dealers also own reptiles, and often, illegally.

But because I don't have a Google Alert set up for "pit bulls," I can't tell you whether more drug busts are associated with reptiles or with pit bulls, so I willfully admit that there's some confirmation bias at play here.

My point is that a lot of us reptile owners get a bad rap because of a few scumbags. And I fear that a recent news story regarding a meth bust might have confused a few people, and I hope the confusion isn't widespread. I hope to clear up any existing confusion right here.

The story in question is about Teri Lynn Peveto of Murchison, TX. She lives in a gated community of 300 houses that "isn't breaking the half-a-million-dollar mark on home prices," but I guarantee you that in east Texas any community sporting houses over $400k is a nice community. She is known as the "Turtle Lady" because she takes in and rehabilitates box turtles in need. And she has just been arrested for meth possession. (A house fire several years ago, the article implies, might be associated with meth as well.) Well, we all have our demons. No turtles were found in the home. I thank her for any box turtles she lovingly assisted.

My concern regards the legacy of Ila Loetscher, the original "Turtle Lady," who as far as I am aware was never involved in a drug bust. Iowa-raised Loetscher moved to Texas after her husband died in 1955 and devoted the remaining four decades of her life to the cause of sea turtle conservation. During the sixties, Ila spent her energies gathering Kemp's Ridley sea turtle eggs in Mexico and protecting them in South Padre Island until they hatched and went to sea. In the seventies she founded Sea Turtle, Inc., to educate the public and get adults and children involved in sea turtle conservation. She is largely responsible for the substantial comeback of the Kemp's Ridley, and the links below describe her contributions better than I ever can. Ila is the original, the quintessential Turtle Lady, and always will be. RIP Ila, 1904-2000.

The Turtle Lady Legacy
Sea Turtle, Inc.
The Turtle Lady: IIa Fox Loetscher of South Padre
Ila Loetscher, 1905-2000 - Beloved Turtle Hugger of Texas
Ila Loetscher - Wikipedia

I shouldn't mention here that Ila Loetscher was born in Callender, Iowa, and Teri Lynn Peveto lived in a community called Callender Lake, so as to not add to any confusion.