You all remember this classic Mother Goose nursery rhyme:
Humpty Dumpty sat on a wall.
Humpty Dumpty had a great fall.
All the king's horses and all the king's men
Couldn't put Humpty together again.
Well, THIS Humpty had much better luck, thanks to some caring animal service employees and patient vets.
A 90-pound, African tortoise, estimated to be about 30-40 years old was found with severe cracks to his shell in Fallbrook on Sunday.
According to San Diego County Animal Services Director Dan DeSousa, the tortoise, now nicknamed 'Humpty,' somehow got out of his yard and was chased by a dog, and he subsequently fell off a 10-foot wall.
DeSousa told CBS8.
"He's a 90-pound tortoise, not a cat, so he didn't land on his feet. He instead landed on his back, on his shell."
De Sousa said, Humpty was taken to a reptile specialist for surgery:
"The specialist actually had to pry back parts of the shell, had to get in there with levers, to make sure it would fit back together as tight as possible. Fixing it was like a home-improvement project, with screws and other fasteners. Once it was in place, they covered the cracks with the material used to coat dentures, both to help it adhere and to prevent infection."
Humpty has now been released from the animal hospital and is expected to to be ok, but it could take as long as a year for the shell to fully repair properly. And since these kind of tortoises have a life span of about 70 years, we're sure Humpty is thankful for the help!
All told, the vet bills to help Humpty came to about $4,000. If his owner comes forward to claim him, they would be responsible for the medical bills. If no one comes forward to claim him, he'll likely live out the rest of his days at a tortoise rescue, and the vet bill will be paid for by the Spirit Veterinary Medical Fund, which is a fund made up of donations from the public specifically earmarked to help injured animals like Humpty.
Learn more about the Spirit Veterinary Medical Fund and donate to help future animals like Humpty.
CLICK HERE to see the photos of vets putting Humpty back together again!