Cologne (dpa / lnw) – 16 small tortoises have been exposed in a box in Cologne. A passer-by found the animals in the Porz district, said the Cologne-Dellbrück animal shelter on its Facebook page on Wednesday. The turtles were numbered in white paint on their shells. It is unclear whether the animals were abandoned by their breeder or stolen and then left in the box.

Before the tortoises can be placed, they have to be registered with the Lower Landscape Authority. “Please be patient a little longer with mediation requests,” it said. “Bild” had previously reported.