Did they give any indication of the animal’s age or how big he would get?
Pretty impressive.
Here is the email I got from the herp guy in Austin.
“Yes, that is a Geochelone sulcata, native to Africa. They are very popular in the pet trade and have become very affordable in recent years. That’s a problem since they get huge (80+ lbs) and live FOREVER. Folks often get rid of them when they become 30 lb wrecking balls. The animal needs to be moved to a safe place. They can’t survive TX winters and aren’t well suited to N. TX in general. I can provide a home for the animal if you are able to capture it.”
That thing has to be at least 30 years old judging from his size and carapace.