Posted on 08/06/2019 7:51:27 AM PDT by Red Badger
I was driving through my neighborhood a few years ago when I noticed a small commotion in an older gentleman’s backyard. Several people had stopped to see what was going on and curiosity got the best of me, so I pulled over, too. When I asked what was going on, someone told me the owner’s rather large tortoise had escaped his pen (again). The owner and one of his friend didn’t have much trouble catching the wayward tortoise, but he was so big, they had to bring him back to the enclosure in a wheelbarrow.
I helped them lift the tortoise out of the wheelbarrow and put him back in the pen. Both the owner and his wife were in their 70s, and it was obvious the tortoise would outlive both of them. Someone else told me the couple have custody of the tortoise arranged through the next two generations of the family, since he’ll be around long after they’re gone, and yes, they’ve set aside money to help cover their pet’s long-term (and I do mean long-term) care.
They can be quite good, are cheap, and always available. They are considered a challenge to clean.
Something of a gamble to eat because of a low risk of Haff Disease (rhabdomyolysis) which is why you most likely not ever see it for sale for human consumption.
They counted both the special scale cells which grow new layers yearly and cross-referenced with carbon dating so they match each other.
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