Saying goodbye to your pet can be a pretty painful experience, but Caitlin Doran never had to deal with this heartbreak. She had the same pet since she was seven—an African tortoise called Tiptoe, who’s been by her side for over two decades.
Doran’s family welcomed Tiptoe into their home when she was just seven years old, and this adorable tortoise was actually her Christmas gift from Santa.
“I don’t know if I just loved the attention [from] having a unique animal. But I knew I wanted something I could just spend a lot of time with, so [a] tortoise was up there… He is with me forever. It’s literally a package deal,” she told Fox News.
Tiptoe was just a hand-sized tortoise when Doran first held him in his arms, but he’s now a fully-grown 175-pound pet that requires a lot of care. His owner admits that keeping up with him as he grew older wasn’t easy, and she had to make many modifications along the way.
Doran and Tiptoe have stayed inseparable for the past two decades, and they now live together in Los Angeles. Adjusting to life in a big city had its challenges, but they managed to overcome them. They now enjoy going on walks in the neighborhood and saying “hi” to the locals, who can’t get enough of Tiptoe’s cheerful personality.
