After filling hundreds of people with turkey worry, a well-known bird believed injured and missing has been found safe — and she’s set to become a mother.
The city of Milton, home to 40,000 residents in northern Fulton County, put out a call for the bird on Facebook about 9 p.m. Wednesday. After 15 hours and 100 shares on Facebook, "Batesville Betty" was located with her eggs. The sought-after avian got her name because she is frequently seen crossing Birmingham Highway near Batesville Road.
Milton said in the Facebook post that it was working with Atlanta Wild Animal Rescue Effort (AWARE) in “assessing, rehabbing and returning” the turkey.
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Folks on Facebook were happy to hear Betty had been located. “Fabulous news!!! I love living in a city where we all rally around a turkey,” one person wrote. The city, which wasn’t immediately available for comment, responded to another commentor saying it was thinking about getting “turkey crossing” signs for the area.
“She’s been traveling around for a few months,” said Nicole Troche, who works at Family Tree Animal Clinic, located down the street from the intersection where Betty got her name.
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Troche said Thursday that the staff believes Betty is wild, and they have been seeing her for months, at times walking down the sidewalk by the clinic, which is a couple miles north of City Hall.
She said Betty started limping and holding one leg up a few weeks ago, and over the last couple days Betty has been unable to walk far, often stopping in the middle of traffic, which is what prompted Troche’s call to find and heal her.
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Troche said folks in Milton love Betty and the other turkeys that accompany her.
“Milton is such a rural community … it’s a draw,” she said.
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