Tortoise out for a stroll

A Colorado Parks and Wildlife volunteer loads a tortoise into the back of a truck Tuesday morning.  A person called 911 Tuesday morning to report a large tortoise walking down Patterson Road.

---

Special to the Sentinel

A Colorado Parks and Wildlife volunteer loads a tortoise into the back of a truck Tuesday morning.  A person called 911 Tuesday morning to report a large tortoise walking down Patterson Road.

By Richie Ann Ashcraft
Tuesday, June 26, 2012

A person called 911 Tuesday morning to report a large tortoise walking down Patterson Road.

The estimated 50 pound animal was walking just west of 25 1/2 Road and Patterson along the curb, occasionally weaving into traffic.

Officer Robert Barker with the Grand Junction Police Department responded to the call and removed the animal to an off road location. A Colorado Parks and Wildlife volunteer transported the tortoise to a local animal hospital.

“It’s not something we respond to everyday,” said Kate Porras, public information officer for the GJPD.

The tortoise was uninjured. It had an registration tag attached to its shell, making it possible to contact the animal’s owners.