Meet Bert: 'A mystery that probably won't be solved'

Nov. 13—BELLAIRE — When you drive out of Antrim County Animal Control's parking lot, you are going to want to leave with Bert.

This will not be feasible.

It would be far too difficult to lift Bert into the back seat of your car and, even if you could, he would not fit.

Bert is a 75-pound African Sulcata tortoise who, since April, has lived at the county's animal shelter on M-88, after being seized by officials serving a search warrant in a Central Lake animal abuse case.

He is one of more than 100 animals, many of which are so-called "exotics," shelter staff have returned to good health and are now seeking to re-home, after Antrim County Prosecutor James Rossiter negotiated a forfeiture agreement with their former owner.

"Bert" is the name shelter staff selected for this tortoise, although at an estimated 10 years old, it's likely he has both a previous name and previous owners who cared about, and for, him, staff said.

"His background? That's a mystery that probably won't be solved," said Heather Belknap, an Antrim County animal control officer.

Sulcata tortoises couldn't survive Michigan's climate, but in the Sahara Desert and on the Sahel, a semi-arid grassland in northern Africa, these tortoises are regular inhabitants, with populations increasingly vulnerable to overgrazing by livestock, according to the International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources.

ACAC officers Belknap and Inga Waldrep say they have no further information about Bert, and very little information about many of the animals seized April 28 from a Muckle Road residence.

Court records show Brooklyn Beck and Michael Turland, formerly of Utah and Arizona, brought some or all of the animals to Michigan and faced related animal abuse charges after officials investigated a complaint.

Beck on Nov. 2 pleaded guilty in 13th Circuit Court to two felonies related to what officials said was substandard care and neglect. Turland faces charges in Arizona, court records show.

In the meantime, an Arizona woman, Kali Williams, has come forward to claim many of the snakes seized by officials, one of which, Sneck, she says belonged to her.

Williams also helped connect shelter staff with a previous owner of several Belgian Malinois dogs, though she agreed with shelter staff that the background of dozens of the other animals would likely never be known.

Williams did not take Bert with her when she left Antrim County Nov. 9 with the snakes, however.

"There are vet techs in Michigan with experience caring for giant tortoises and I believe they are considering re-homing him with them," Williams said.

The past six months have been financially costly for the shelter — the county has spent more than $15,000 on food, medical care and housing for the animals, court records show — and the seizure has been emotionally and physically difficult for shelter staff.

Waldrep and Belknap both said they were injured by a Clydesdale horse officials seized in this same case, and which later became unruly while undergoing complex treatments for a hoof infection.

Public safety studies show dealing with abuse, cruelty and hoarding cases also can affect the emotional well-being of professionals like Waldrep and Belknap.

"Bert was too weak to eat, he'd hiss when we tried to feed him and he had a really bad cough," Belknap said as she opened the gate to the specially-outfitted dog run that has been Bert's home since April.

Pet adoptions across the U.S. rose sharply during the pandemic, the ASPCA has reported, after 23 million households adopted pets after stay-at-home orders across many states had people working from home.

As many as 90 percent of dogs and 85 percent of cats adopted during this time period were still in their new homes a year later, the ASPCA said, in a study completed last year.

This squares with anecdotal observations by Northern Michigan animal control officers, who say adoptions were up, and that corresponded with increased complaints of abuse, cruelty and hoarding.

"People are cut off from family and friends, they're lonely, maybe they feel lost, so they turn to animals," said Waldrep, who testified during the Oct. 27 forfeiture hearing in 13th Circuit Court, where the neglect of Bert and the other animals seized was detailed.

Waldrep described how Bert was kept in an upstairs bedroom, with no water, dirty hay and a head of lettuce that was spoiled.

"Those in abuse cases may love their animals as much as we love our animals," Waldrep said. "That doesn't mean they care for them the way they should. We really need more resources going to mental health."

In an unrelated Grand Traverse County case, also investigated during the pandemic, 164 dogs in January were removed by officials from a blighted property on Supply Road; the owner was prosecuted for abuse and neglect and later jailed.

Those animals were re-homed by staff with the Cherryland Humane Society, in conjunction with assistance from shelters in surrounding areas, as previously reported.

The dogs' owner, Raymond Feagles, grew emotional in court and repeatedly expressed to a 13th Circuit Court judge his love for the dogs.

In October, Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel announced her office was partnering with Michigan Humane to investigate and prosecute cases of animal abuse in the state.

So far, the focus of that partnership has been on large dog-fighting operations downstate, although Nessel's office previously partnered with Michigan Humane to raise awareness about puppy mills and internet scams involving sales of purebred dogs.

Waldrep said less-common animals, particularly large reptiles like tortoises, could fall prey to abuse, partly because people do not understand how difficult they are to properly care for.

In Bellaire, Bert spends most of his time inside a secure chain-link enclosure, located in a small room off the shelter's lobby, where there are heat lamps, ultraviolet lights, a small electric space heater and, inside the enclosure, two large metal bowls of water and flakes of a special variety of hay.

Some advice: Do not give credence to that clichéd fairytale about a race between a tortoise and a rodent. Large tortoises can put together a half-decent sprint when they want to — think Massimo Go-Kart with roll cage accelerating out of first gear.

And a head's-up: When Bert motors out of the gate on his enclosure, he is going to steer straight for you.

Bert's eyes are small, lively and black and he can't see very far, but when he gets close, he is going to stretch his neck up and look you right in the eye.

Do not be surprised if you feel compelled to look away before Bert does — it can be unsettling to feel like a stand-in for all of humanity — but if you gently scratch his neck, he will approve of this interaction.

You won't know how you know he's good with it, you just will.

"These tortoises are social animals, they like company, they have personalities and they're smart," Waldrep said.

"Some of the animals we're going to post on our Facebook page as available, but not him," Waldrep added. "Everyone would want him. But he needs a very specific kind of owner who understands how to take care of him."

Waldrep explained how shelter staff began Bert's care by hand-feeding him a few pieces of cantaloupe melon, which helped with hydration and got Bert to open his mouth so they could give him antibiotics for a respiratory infection.

From there, Waldrep and Belknap said Bert slowly gained his strength back, and now eats Romaine lettuce, vegetables cut up into very small pieces and fruit, although fruit is given sparingly as too many "wet" foods can cause a life-threatening vitamin imbalance.

Commercial pet food manufacturers make a kind of "turtle chow," but Waldrep gives this product a thumbs-down. Ingredient lists show it is mostly soy and corn and does not have the roughage reptile experts say tortoises need for good health.

Mature Sulcata tortoises can live for 80 years or more, according to the Journal of the Herpetologist Association of Africa and African Wildlife, among other publications, but they are not suitable as pets for anyone but reptile experts.

Reptile rescue organizations acknowledge pet owners in most, if not all U.S. states, can legally own these animals, but they usually buy them when they are small, planning to donate them to zoos when they get too large to care for.

Information posted online by many large zoos, such as the San Diego Zoo, state that zoos already have plenty of Sulcata tortoises donated by other owners who had this same idea.

"There are many wonderful tortoises out there more suited to smaller homes and yards, tortoises that do not require kidney belts and hernia repair to pick up and move them, and who in turn will not redecorate your house and yard by knocking through walls and fixtures," writes Melissa Kaplan, author and reptile consultant.

"While many people can visualize just how much 100 pounds weighs, actually seeing a tortoise that size is a breathtaking — and sobering — sight," Kaplan says.

Which is why, unless you are a veterinarian, a herpetologist or a self-taught reptile expert, you will not be driving home with Bert.

No matter how much you'd like to.