DeFUNIAK SPRINGS — Mary Hall refused to get out of bed the first few days she was at Chautauqua Rehabilitation and Nursing Center.
But when she heard about the center’s unusual pet, she found herself wandering outside at least once a day to get a peek and give a head scratch.
“Shelley is just wonderful,” the 65-year-old Hall said as she watched the African spur thigh tortoise slowly make its way to a grassy patch in the rehab center’s courtyard.
“I just love to come and see Shelley and watch her. I think she’s very therapeutic,” Hall added.
GALLERY: Shelley the Tortoise. >>
VIDEO: Shelley the tortoise at Chautauqua Rehab & Nursing.>>
Nonie Celeste of Nonie’s Ark Animal Encounters donated the tortoise to the center. She said the attention and love is just what the 15-year-old, 35-pound tortoise needed. Celeste found the tortoise about five years ago wandering down State Road 20.
“It’s been great getting to share her with the residents,” Celeste said. “She’s getting a lot more attention than I could ever give her, and the residents are really enjoying having her.”
Brandy Meredith, occupational therapist and self-proclaimed tortoise wrangler, said most residents love watching Shelley, some are afraid and another recalls cooking tortoise soup.
“She makes this place feel like home,” Meredith said as she lured Shelley out of her shelter with a bowl of food. “It’s a little difficult because it’s a 35-pound tortoise, but it just makes the place feel homey.”
Residents look out the windows to the courtyard every day waiting for Shelley to venture out of her small shelter. As soon as she appears, a crowd gathers.
“This is something you just don’t find everywhere,” said 93-year-old Sarah Flow who sat by a window and kept her eyes glued to the courtyard. “I’ve sat here so many times just watching Shelley and watching the people come and go, wanting to see her.
“She just crawls all over.”
Shelley gets more attention than any animal could hope for. She regularly gets her neck and head scratched and her eyes rubbed. Most days she gets a cocoa butter treatment on her head.
“She’s just as sweet as she can be and good. She’s so good,” said 82-year-old Dolores Messer. “Of course, she always wants more to drink and more to eat, but I think she’s just fine.
“If I didn’t have anybody else but her, I’d like to say I’d be happy.”
Contact Daily News Staff Writer Angel McCurdy at 850-315-4432 or amccurdy@nwfdailynews.com. Follow her on Twitter @AngelMnwfdn.
