NOTE: The photo above is not the actual tortoise, but looks similar. Photo sent by Menominee Park Zoo when tortoise went missing.
After missing for almost a month, a stolen tortoise was returned to an Oshkosh zoo last week.
The Russian tortoise, named Anastasia, was found on August 8 back in her exercise pen at the Menominee Park Zoo, the city said Thursday.
City staff believes her kidnapper returned her either late that Monday night or very early Tuesday morning.
Anastasia was cold when she was found and did not eat at first, according to Stacy Donnelly, Menominee Park Zoo Specialist. However, she is doing fine now a week later.
Russian tortoises prefer warm, dry climates.
Park officials have thanked the public for the support in searching for Anastasia. They believe the awareness raised after she was taken was a big reason why she's now back safe and sound.
“We want to say thank you to everyone that looked for her, put the word out through social media, phone
calls, word of mouth,” said Donelly. “They put a lot of heat on, and I think that whoever took her decided that
instead of whatever plan they had to sell her or what it could have been, they decided that it would be a better
idea to bring her back.”
