A car thief got quite a surprise when the Suburban he stole turned out to have a few cold-blooded passengers in the back. KDNVR in Denver, Colo., reports that police recovered the SUV the day after it was stolen, with all the animals safe inside.

The vehicle belongs to Phil Rakoci, who goes by the name of "Wildman Phil." He does educational shows for children with his 13-foot python and 13 other animals, including a three-legged African Spurred Tortoise named Stumpy, for whom Rakoci had made a wheel to enable him to get around.

From KDVR:

A police spokesman indicated that authorities discovered the SUV abandoned at West Iliff Avenue and South Quitman Street at approximately 8:55 a.m. Thursday.

Rakoci will most certainly be relieved, considering his postings on Facebook at 4:47 a.m. Thursday: ”AMBER ALERT!” Rakoci wrote. “Stumpy the Tortoise has been kidnapped in the Denver area!”

Rakoci went on to say say he didn’t care about the car or the computer inside. He simply wanted to recover his reptiles. “We’re like family,” he wrote.

It seems only natural that Rakoci would feel a special tie to the three-legged tortoise.

According to Rakoci’s website, “Stumpy” was left on his front porch in a milk crate four years ago missing one of his two front legs. Rakoci said that he and “Fabricator” Ken Hillery clamped the 50-pound African Spurrred tortoise in a vise for 24 hours and surgically attached a bracket and wheel to the outside of the reptile’s shell.

“Stumpy” has been wheeling around on the wheel for the past seven odd years.

Happy ending for all! Read the full story here.