Milwaukee tortoise found after escaping backyard

MILWAUKEE - Escaped and wandering the busy streets of Milwaukee, Louise the pet tortoise had quite the adventure. FOX6 News was there for her reunion with her family on Wednesday, July 19.

Louise isn't your typical pet. She's been a part of Jason Nickels' life for 20 years, so when she disappeared, Nickels cast a wide net, posting on social media and recruiting strangers to help with the search.

Louise managed to make it from Milwaukee's west side to Cedarburg, where Nickels was reunited with her on Wednesday.

Louise

"Yeah, it's definitely her," he said. "I felt pretty sick not having her anymore because it had been 20 years of having her as a pet."

Nickels said Louise found a way to get out of her shell, digging under the fence and leaving her backyard.

Louise

"I’ve had the tortoise longer than I’ve had my kids," said Nickels. "They’ve always known her being around, so they were very worried."

The 40-pound tortoise's escape weighed on a lot of hearts.

She's well-known at the school where Nickels is a teacher.

"She gets to walk around, and she tends to like to go to the office because the office ladies keep strawberries for her," said Nickels.

During Louise’s unsanctioned trip after digging her way out of her backyard, she somehow crossed Green Bay and get into Nickel's neighbor’s yard.

Louise

"It just doesn’t surprise me because she’s so independent," said Nickels. "She just does whatever she wants to do."

"She hung out with us for a couple hours," said Erin Loechler. "It was awesome. She was super friendly."

Loechler, Nickels' neighbor, snapped a photo to her co-worker, Abigail de Guelle.

"I said, ‘Oh my gosh, that’s definitely not a wild turtle,’" said de Guelle.

She drove out from Cedarburg to take Louise in. She said someone helped return her own tortoise, Gio, when he went missing, so she was happy to return the favor.

"People are posting it," said de Guelle. "I was like, ‘Oh my gosh, I helped find her home.’"

Louise may have no idea how many people it took to get her home, but Nickels said he's grateful.

"Thank you for being caring and for helping out a stranger," said Nickels. "Let her roam her real yard like she’s supposed to be."

Louise

Nickels said Louise is about 25 and could live to be up to 100 years old, so he is his child's and future grandchild's inheritance. Needless to say, the family was happy to have her back home.