Strawberry Shortcake, the tortoise, moseys home

It took almost two weeks, but in the end a tortoise that disappeared from its Mount Pearl home has returned, safe and sound.

Leanne Guzzwell said she unexpectedly found Strawberry Shortcake on Sunday after arriving home from work. The tortoise was waiting for her by the front steps of her home.

"At first I kind of had to do a double-take because I thought I was seeing things," she said. "I had just worked a 12-hour shift so I was tired. And when I looked again I said, 'Oh my God, that's Strawberry Shortcake.' I was really happy just to have found her and that she was safe."

Guzzwell first noticed that her red-footed pet was missing around suppertime on June 2. 

"She was just kind of grazing in the grass, and then when I went back in I had got a little distracted by something and came out a little while later and she was gone," Guzzwell said at the time.

She said she initially went into a panic looking for the tortoise, which usually hangs out in the backyard munching on grass.

"I couldn't finder her anywhere. I could see her tracks ... and then they just stopped, so then I was worried that maybe she had been taken. We've had things stolen off our property here before. I hope that's not the case, though. If someone does have her, I hope she's being taken care of and that they're trying to find me."

Guzzwell was aided in the search by friends and family through word of mouth and social media.

She isn't sure how the tortoise came to be where she found her, but said she'll be keeping a much closer eye on her in the future.