![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Sallyanne-Brooksbank-with-her-Hermanns-tortoise-SWNS.jpg\")
Sallyanne Brooksbank with her Hermann\u2019s tortoise \u2013 SWNS<\/p>\n Sallyanne Brooksbank with her Hermann\u2019s tortoise \u2013 SWNS<\/p>\n
A tortoise that had been missing for a month after escaping her garden was found three miles away\u2014having gone on the run at a brisk pace of 0.0041 miles per hour.<\/p>\n
The Hermann\u2019s tortoise named Matilda managed to scale a zucchini plant to pull off her daring escape and slow getaway in early July.<\/p>\n
The 10-year-old reptile then managed to negotiate several neighbor\u2019s\u2019 fences, dodge cars while crossing a road, and traverse a stream in the Leicestershire countryside of England.<\/p>\n
Owner Sallyanne Brooksbank said she\u2019d given up hope of seeing Matilda again after a month without any sightings.<\/p>\n
But the tiny runaway reptile, which is barely the size of a saucer, was discovered last week in a field by pedestrians who were concerned about its safety so brought it into a local clothing shop.<\/p>\n
Sallyanne then spotted her missing tortoise on Facebook when the shopkeeper posted about the discovery online.<\/p>\n
Shop owner David Howley wrote: \u201cThe young girl thought she was going to tread on it because it was so well hidden. She put it in her t-shirt and brought it here.\u201d<\/p>\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Close-up-of-Hermanns-tortoise-SWNS.jpg\")
Matilda, a Hermann\u2019s tortoise \u2013 SWNS<\/p>\n
From the moment the tortoise was discovered it took just a little over four hours until the woman called to inquire about Matilda.<\/p>\n
\u201cShe had a mark on her and they described it perfectly, they lived around three miles away so she had moved like a rocket,\u201d the shopkeeper joked.<\/p>\n
Delighted at her good fortune, Sallyanne has now been reunited with her beloved pet and says it was a \u201cmiracle\u201d she survived after traveling the impressive distance.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe searched the garden over and over, and I thought we\u2019d never see her again,\u201d the 55-year-old told SWNS news. \u201cShe must have had quite an adventure.\u201d<\/p>\n
Sallyanne believes her tortoise headed in the direction of the nearby village of Sewstern, somehow surviving busy roads and water crossings.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe wish she could speak.\u201d<\/p>\n
The escape<\/p>\n
The last time she was home, she was inside a raised garden bed made of wood, about 12 inches tall and full of veggies and bean plants.<\/p>\n
SLOW AND STEADY WINS: After 9 Months on the Run, Escaped English Tortoise Found 1 Mile from Home Having Hibernated Through Winter<\/a><\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s dug out to make sure she can\u2019t get out, so she either climbed or just jumped out of it.<\/p>\n \u201cShe\u2019s not very agile, but I think she may have climbed up a courgette stalk (a British zucchini) to get out of the garden.<\/p>\n \u201cShe has tiny claws and we think she clawed up the stem of the plants. She then headed off in the direction of Sewstern.<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019ve been trying to work out her route, but it has to have been through several fences, across fields, a ditch, a road, a stream and who knows what else.<\/p>\n \u201cShe would\u2019ve definitely crossed roads and dodged cars.\u201d<\/p>\n The family don\u2019t know who found their cherished pet, but they hope to eventually track them down and thank them.<\/p>\n \u201cShe could have been attacked by badgers or foxes or squashed by a car, but she seems fine.<\/p>\n \u201cThere are no marks on her shell, and she gobbled up the food we gave her.<\/p>\n \u201cShe seems happy to be home, and I know we are happy to have her back.<\/p>\n \u201cWe bought her for my son Rory when he was 12-years-old back in September 2013.\u201d<\/p>\n TWO TURTLE LOVES: \u201cShe was a hatchling and only the size of a coin. She was tiny.<\/p>\n \u201cThe people who picked her up were walking towards Sewsterns when they spotted her. It\u2019s amazing they saw her really.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m very nervous about leaving her out at night now. She\u2019s proved to be very adventurous indeed.\u201d<\/p>\n SEND A GUARANTEED SMILE To Friends By Posting on Social Media\u2026<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Sallyanne Brooksbank with her Hermann\u2019s tortoise \u2013 SWNS A tortoise that had been missing for a month after…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":64213,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[26],"tags":[64,63,1208,5405,2473,15849,51408,128,7819,338],"class_list":{"0":"post-64212","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-wildlife","8":"tag-au","9":"tag-australia","10":"tag-england","11":"tag-found","12":"tag-pets","13":"tag-reptiles","14":"tag-reunion","15":"tag-science","16":"tag-surprise","17":"tag-wildlife"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/64212","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=64212"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/64212\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/64213"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=64212"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=64212"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=64212"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/rural-Wymondham-sign-in-England-SQUARE-SWNS.jpg\")
Rural Wymondham sign in England \u2013 SWNS<\/p>\n
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