Lost Giant Tortoise Returns To Tennessee Home After 74 Days
on Sep 02, 2020
We’ve all had to chase after a dog after it’s strayed too far from the yard – but a giant tortoise? We all know that slow and steady wins the race, but this story takes the old adage to the next level.
It happened to Lynn Cole, a resident of Ashland City, Tennessee. Her 150-pound African Sulcata Tortoise, Solomon, decided he wanted to venture outside of his enclosure in her backyard.
“Our tortoise’s name is Solomon and he has been a family pet from shortly after birth to present. He is a vegetarian land tortoise and is very gentle. His weight is close to 150 pounds and he measures close to 36 inches tip to tail,” she wrote in a post to the Tortoise & Turtle Lost & Found group on Facebook.
“Solomon is comfortable around both people and domestic pets. He is a beloved pet and a member of our family.”
After more than a two-month adventure, Solomon was discovered just an eighth of a mile from Cole’s home, hanging out and enjoying some grass at a construction site. Nothing was amiss – Solomon appeared to be happy and in good health.
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There’s no telling what the 15-year old giant tortoise did while enjoying the adventure of a lifetime. Of Solomon’s adventure into the wild, Cole told WKRN, “I guess that we will never know the full details of Solomon’s great adventure and how he managed to elude us all for so long.”
Thankfully, the father and son who drove by the construction site and saw Solomon knew that something was amiss, and contacted the appropriate authorities to ensure that Solomon safely made his way home.
