Tag, you're it! It's the modern-day story of the tortoise and the cat hair (Sorry... I had to!).
A fluffy black kitty and a surprisingly agile and fast turtle played an exciting game of tag around a pole, and lucky for us, someone was there to video it!
My mom found a baby turtle in the backyard a couple days ago. It was hiding under a garbage can, I think she said. So, like anyone in my animal-loving family would do, she set out to save her.
I was at work when I got a text that said "Look who I found" with this picture:
The tiny turtle minutes after being found. Just hanging out on a Tupperware lid.
Cute little thing, huh? They don't have a lake right behind their house, so however this brave turtle got there, it was quite a little trip!
A few minutes later, she texted me this picture...
Upgrade! Now the turtle has some mulch and some greens -- and the other side of the Tupperware!
At this point I asked if she was going to keep her or maybe take her to school with her as a class pet (my mom is a preschool teacher). She answered "Salmonella!" and I guess that meant she can't because the kids might get sick.
I have no idea why, but that inspired me to name the turtle E. coli, and that stuck. I was texting a friend at the time and he suggested that E. coli would probably like some more water. I relayed the message, and a few minutes later...
Even better! She upgraded from mulch to a rock and now has more water to play in.
E. coli, as you'll note, is also a gourmet turtle. She is not eating regular leaves... she is eating arugula!
E. coli decided to take a little dip in her new digs.
Silly turtle, we see you hiding under your arugula!
E. coli had a sleepover at their house, I guess, and the next morning she was in for a very exciting day. She was going to my mom's school after all -- but only for a day so the kids could see her. They were allowed to look, but not touch.
My mom said they just stared at E. coli for more than 15 minutes!
And after E. coli's big 24 hours, it was time to go to a place where she can grow up like she's supposed to and get big and strong -- the lake by my parent's house! This is a video of my mom letting her go. (Can you see where I get my squeaky talking-to-animals voice from?)
I hope E. coli had a good time with my mom. I know I had a good time getting all the updates, and it was all so cute that I just had to share with you all!
They say that opposites attract, and maybe it's true. One: soft, furry, indifferent, 13 pounds or so. The other: hard-shelled, green, determined, maybe 3 ounces.
And yet, there's nothing this tiny turtle wouldn't do for just one sweet smooch from his kitty love...
If you're not in any kind of hurry, I suppose a turtle would be a nice, relaxing thing to catch a ride on... especially if you're a fluffy kitten just out cruising for cute.
I bet all the other cute kitties are jealous of this little guy's smooth ride.
P.S. Don't forget, you still have time to leave a comment on Tuesday's post-- for each comment, Iams is going to donate 25 bowls of food the shelter animals as part of their Iams Home for the Holidays campaign! Go there now! :)
We could learn a lot from turtles. Slow down and don't hurry through life (what's the rush?), take the time to wait for friends (things are better with them) and grow a little bit of a thick shell (I'm learning this one right now).
This video is so sweet. Check out how he waits for his buddy to catch up before walking on... Aw.
Move over doggies, there's a new trickster in town!
Somehow this man has actually trained his turtle to sit, stay, rollover, "go fast" and shake. I suppose I buy it, although I'm not sure I buy the man's sanity...
We all know I love animals, but I absolutely lerrrrve baby animals. (Lerve: To delight in another's existence beyond what can be expressed with a mundane word like love.)
The mini versions are (usually) so much cuter! Check out the Zoo Babies slideshow -- I can't embed it here, but check it out at that link -- and pick your favorite.
If you haven't decided what to get me for Christmas yet, I'll take a baby hippo, a baby zebra and a baby seal. You can keep the baby parrot.
kthxbai.
Can't get enough of cute slideshows? Check out the fat animals Obeasts slideshow, too!
