Cops discover tortoise on highway — learn she’s been missing from home for 3 years
By daisydoll
Maintaining hope is crucial when a pet goes missing, even in the bleakest moments. Countless stories depict animals reuniting with their families months or even years after their disappearance.
Such a heartening tale unfolded recently in Florida, where officers discovered a stray creature that had been missing for three years. However, this wasn't a dog or a cat; it was an African sulcata tortoise.
On October 21, the Putnam County Sheriff’s Office in Florida shared on Facebook that they had encountered an "unusual-looking tortoise" trying to cross SR 20 in Interlachen.
They identified the tortoise as an African Sulcata, a species of tortoise native to the Sahara desert and not Florida, so they knew it didn’t belong in the wild. They suspected it was someone’s pet who had gotten loose.
“He is definitely someone’s tortoise as he likes people and head pats,” the sheriff’s office wrote on Facebook.
Facebook/Putnam County Sheriff’s Office
The following day, they posted an update: they had found the tortoise’s owner, and learned that she had been missing since 2020!
They wrote that the tortoise, which they learned is a female, is in “a little rough shape” after being missing for so long and experiencing “a few cold winters,” but now she is back with her owner. They said the tortoise was found not far from where she went missing and had only traveled five miles.
Facebook/Putnam County Sheriff’s Office
Though sulcata tortoises are heavy and slow-moving creatures, they have a knack for escaping and are able to dig through their enclosures. Last month two escaped sulcata tortoises made headlines after being found wandering the streets.
We’re so glad this tortoise is finally safe at home after being missing for three years! Please share this amazing news!
You are currently reading about Cops discover tortoise on highway — learn she’s been missing from home for 3 years. If you've found this helpful, please share Cops discover tortoise on highway — learn she’s been missing from home for 3 years on your favorite social media site, such as Facebook, Twitter, or Google+
