Pet’s great escape: fifth of a mile in six months at 0.00005mph
IT WAS less of a great escape and more a laborious plod.
Tallulah the tortoise, who broke free from her Oxford garden last July, was found on Wednesday just a fifth of a mile away, having travelled at an aver- age speed of less than 0.00005mph.
The nine-year-old pet had lived happily with its owners, Danielle Morris, 50 and her daughter, Leanna, 29, for many years, never venturing beyond the confines of their garden.
That is until six months ago, when she was enjoying the sunshine, chewing on plants, and trotting up and down the lawn when she came across a small foxhole and disappeared.
A lot has happened in the intervening months: catastrophic hurricanes, royal engagements, sex abuse scandals and a Brexit breakthrough. But for Tallulah, it was a case of making slow and steady progress in a dead straight line, through a neighbouring back garden, past the house, carefully crossing a busy road and finally, making her way into a school field.
It was there she was found some six months later by a shocked pupil, having endured two snowfalls and managing to dodge foxes, birds and, most astonishingly, two lanes of busy traffic.
Mrs Morris, a kitchen assistant at Oxford University’s Balliol College, told The Daily Telegraph: “We were devastated when she disappeared and we looked everywhere. We put posters up, posted leaflets through neighbours’ doors, contacted the local school, pet shops and whoever we could think of. But time passed and we eventually gave up hope. We realised she had gone. We reluctantly gave away the box she lived in and all her food and really did not expect to see her again.”
But then, on Wednesday, to Ms Morris’s astonishment, she received a call from the RSPCA to say that Tallulah, who was microchipped, had been found over the road at Cheney School.
“We just couldn’t believe it,” she added. “She was literally over the road, a stone’s throw away.
“The most bizarre thing is how she managed to cross the road. Gipsy Lane is incredibly busy; it’s near the school, a hospital and a crossroads. Maybe she trotted across last summer in the sunshine and got lucky, or maybe she crossed at night. We were so pleased.”
Tallulah is being looked after by a local vet. She had lost weight, had an eye infection and blotchy skin, suggesting something else might be wrong.
“We’re just waiting now for a call with the all-clear,” Ms Morris added.