HUNTSVILLE ITEM (Texas) 02 April 08 Fair exhibitor looking for lost tortoise (Kristin Edwards)

Walker County Fair exhibitor Jimmy Calhoun is offering a cash reward for the safe return of an African Spur Thigh Tortoise which escaped from its cage at the Walker County Fairgrounds late Tuesday night.

According to Calhoun, the 80-pound tortoise was last seen in the back parking lot of the fairgrounds at approximately 6 p.m. on Tuesday and was more than likely taken out of the area.

“We’re doing music shows at the Walker County Fair, but we did reptile fairs in Conroe, so we have a lot of rare animals with us right now,” Calhoun said. “I had this animal — he’s actually a very rare desert tortoise — in a cage outside, and I was checking on him every ten minutes.

“Between 5:45 p.m. and 5:55 p.m., some girls saw him outside of his cage, took pictures with him and then carried him off towards the woods behind the back parking lot, thinking he was wild and that they were doing the right thing.

“Needless to say, in this situation, they did the opposite of the right thing, because he has to have a special diet and humidity in order to survive.”

After Calhoun realized the tortoise was missing, he had a group of approximately 30 people search the area for the animal, but it was never found.

“Since he’s a desert animal and he doesn’t like shade, I can only assume he went back into the parking lot area and someone picked him up,” he said. “That would mean someone involved with the fair more than likely has him, but I can’t be sure.”

According to Calhoun, the animal is called an African Spur Thigh Tortoise because it has spur-like appendages on its back legs. It is dark beige and tan in color, has an ornate shell and is between 9 and 12 inches tall.

In the event that someone did pick up the animal, Calhoun said there are a few very important things to remember about its care.

“If someone did pick him up, I just hope they didn’t put him into water, because that would kill him,” he said. “His shell would disintegrate, so he’s not supposed to go in any water.

“Also, he’s vegetarian, and he just ate a whole head of lettuce before he was lost. He can eat a couple of apples and a head of lettuce every day if he wants to — he’s that big.”

With any information, contact Calhoun at (620) 282-0414.
Fair exhibitor looking for lost tortoise

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• TX Press: Fair exhibitor looks for Tort - W von Papineäu, Fri Apr 4 11:23:06 2008