This is a sad story that hopefully has a happy ending.

Over the past couple of days, I've seen Facebook posts and flyers around Town Plot, Bunker Hill, and Middlebury asking if I've seen a missing tortoise. My friends, Nicki and Dawn Maiorano, have really been trying to get this big guy back home. I'd like to help.

The photo above is Toby himself. He's actually quite big. I'd estimate him to be about two feet long, and over a foot tall and wide. He's got spiky humps on his shell, and his legs are really scaly.

Here's the back story:

Toby is a family pet, and has been missing since Saturday, May 27. He was found wandering around his Bunker Hill neighborhood on Sunday, May 28. Toby caused quite a stir when he was found and a crowd gathered.

A gentleman in the crowd offered to return him to, "his natural habitat to set him free," which turned out to be Flander's Nature Center in Woodbury, more specifically, he set him free in Sperry Pond on Straits Turnpike.

The problem here is that Tortoises are not Turtles. Tortoises live on land, Turtles are amphibious, but live most of their lives in the water. Toby spent most of the time under a nice warm reptile heat lamp, and as we know, it hasn't exactly been too warm over the past few days.

So, if you're going to be around Sperry Pond/Middlebury/Waterbury area, please keep your eyes open for a big Tortoise. If you do happen to find him, Toby is friendly, and he should not bite, but I'd be cautious anyway. Most importantly, call Toby's owner Dawn at 203-908-5947.

 

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