Moe

Moe, born in 1999, and a Safe Haven resident since 2011

HISTORY

Moe was either abandoned or escaped from his owner before being found wandering around a neighborhood just before winter. As a desert tortoise, he is not made to survive our cold winter months and was thankfully rescued and brought to Safe Haven just in time.

Moe is over 20 years old and still has a very long life ahead of him. If given the opportunity, Moe could climb Mt. Everest. He loves to climb on bags of dog food, under tables and desks and into boxes filled with just about anything you can think of. When our donated produce arrives, we have to check on Moe’s whereabouts and make sure he’s not trying to climb into the boxes to help himself to his favorite foods.

During the summer months, Moe enjoys spending his days in his outdoor enclosure. During the winter months, he can be found hibernating inside his den box, only to emerge the following spring.

ABOUT DESERT TORTOISES

Desert tortoises can live to be 70-80 years of age, with some even living to 100. They can survive without water for up to a year, using internal reserves only as needed. They also will create caches for collecting rain water and can be found waiting by one prior to a storm. Male desert tortoises have a boney protrusion called a gular horn at the front of their bottom shell that can be used when fighting with other males to flip their opponents, which in turn compromises their ability to breathe.