Your data on MRCVSonline
The nature of the services provided by Vision Media means that we might obtain certain information about you.
Please read our Data Protection and Privacy Policy for details.

In addition, (with your consent) some parts of our website may store a 'cookie' in your browser for the purposes of
functionality or performance monitoring.
Click here to manage your settings.
If you would like to forward this story on to a friend, simply fill in the form below and click send.

Your friend's email:
Your email:
Your name:
 
 
Send Cancel
Tortoise survives 30 years in storeroom
Image: Perla Rodrigues/TV Globo
Family pet rediscovered after three decades

A red-footed tortoise has been found alive in a locked storeroom box, 30 years after she went missing.

Manuela disappeared from her family home in Rio de Jeneiro, Brazil, in 1982, when her owners were having building work done in the house
. Despite a lengthy search, the family assumed that the tortoise had crept out the front door, which had been left open by the builders.

Leandro Almeida and his sister Lenita, who had been given Manuela as a childhood pet, were astonished to come across the tortoise some three decades later when clearing out the old house, following the death of their father Leonel.

The siblings knew they had their work cut out when they came across their father's locked storeroom on the second floor that had been filled with broken electrical items.

"Everything my father thought he could fix, he picked up and brought home," Lenita explained. "If he found an old television he thought he might be able to use a part of it to fix another one in the future, so he just kept accumulating things. We never dared go inside that room."

Leandro was moving a box containing broken, dusty record player outside when the discovery was made.

"I put the box on the pavement for the rubbish men to collect and a neighbour said, 'You're not throwing out the tortoise as well are you?'. I looked and saw Manuela. At that moment I turned white. I just could not believe what I was seeing," recalled Leandro.

Local vet Jeferson Pires explained that the red-footed tortoise species is known to be particularly resilient and can survive for two to three years without food. He added that Manuela may have survived by eating termites from the wooden floor and finding condensation on smooth surfaces.

Lenita commented: "We're all thrilled to have Manuela back. But no one can understand how she managed to survive for 30 years in there, it's just unbelievable."

Become a member or log in to add this story to your CPD history

RUMA CA&E extends survey deadline

News Story 1
 RUMA CA&E has extended the deadline for its online survey into vaccine availability.

Vets, SQPs, retailers and wholesalers will now have until Friday, 26 September at 5pm to submit their response.

The survey aims to further understanding into the vaccine supply challenges faced by the sector. It will also consider the short and long term impacts of disruption issues.

Insights are anonymous, and will be shared with industry stakeholders and government bodies.

The survey can be accessed here

Click here for more...
News Shorts
BSAVA publishes Guide to Nutrition in Small Animal Practice

The BSAVA has added a small animal nutrition advice booklet to its series of BSAVA guides.

The BSAVA Guide to Nutrition in Small Animal Practice offers a resource for veterinary professionals to provide appropriate nutrition for animals. As well as maintaining the wellbeing of healthy pets, the guide explores how nutritional requirements change in times of illness and disease.

The guide is divided into five sections, which explore the importance of nutritional assessment; diet types; feeding at different life stages; feeding for specific situations; and feeding for specific diseases. Online resources are also in the BSAVA Library including client handouts and videos.

It is designed to be suitable for referencing, in-depth case planning and team training sessions.

The BSAVA Guide to Nutrition in Small Animal Practice can be purchased online from the BSAVA store.