How do you tell if a turtle is about to lay eggs?

Question

i need to to know because i just caught 1

Answer 1

Release it back to where you found it.  In many places it is illegal to take turtles of many species from the wild.

If it is a female turtle DON'T poke at her because if she is gravid then you could make an egg break which is a very bad thing and could eventually kill her.  When she is ready to lay eggs she will frantically look for a good place to lay them-if she is acting odd on her basking spot and assuming that she doesn't have access to an area a little larger than her body and filled with a loose sand/soil mixture about 4-6" deep, then she needs to lay the eggs NOW.  Without a suitable nest spot she will retain the eggs for too long which can kill her.

Answer 2

I've seen turtles in the yard dig a hole through the dirt to lay eggs, then cover them with dirt and move away from the area.

I don't know how you would know if a turtle was kept indoors, unless there is somewhere safe to hide the eggs.