Woman Finds A Tortoise In Her Attic And It Turns Out To Be A Pet Her Mom Lost 30 Years Ago
A tortoise that vanished from a childhood home in 1982 turned up in the most unexpected place, and the family could hardly believe what they were seeing. What started as a routine cleanup after a death became a reunion decades in the making.
Nathalye De Almeida grew up hearing about Manuela, the pet tortoise her mother lost when she was just eight years old. The family assumed she had escaped for good, until someone found a tortoise tucked inside an old speaker box in the attic of Almeida's grandfather's house.
By then, the story had already taken a wild turn, and the tortoise was still alive.
This is Manuela. She went missing 40 years ago
And she was found 10 years ago in the owner's attic.
Manuela has never been better, nearly ten years after her discovery and 40 years after her disappearance. (She now goes by the name Manuel after being identified as a male tortoise.)
Since then, Almeida has been looking after him.
“Manuel is doing great. He’s grown a lot,” Almeida said. “I brought him in to live with me because I have a lot of affection for him.”
She is still alive and well. Only now she is called Manuel (because the family found out he is male)
After so many years in the attic, Almeida says she still receives many questions about Manuel and his discovery, many of which are difficult to answer considering his incredible ability to survive in those conditions. But one thing is certain: he never left Almeida's mother's heart.
“She visits him weekly, happy to see my daughter with him,” Almeida said. “She feeds him, pets him, and kisses him. He's part of our family. He is one of us.”
Manuela and her keeper’s reunion feels like Jonathan, the oldest tortoise, celebrating his 190th birthday.
The family believes the tortoise was able to survive by eating termite larvae in the overfilled room
Many people keep tortoises as pets because they are quiet, cute (particularly as hatchlings), and don't shed fur. Tortoises, however, can live for a very long time (anywhere from 50 to 100 years).
If you adopt one as a pet, be prepared to care for it for the rest of your life, and keep in mind that it may outlive you.
Manuela's story is the kind of reunion nobody sees coming.
For another tortoise reunion, read about a turtle escaping for 3 years and showing up 5 miles away.
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