Posted on 07/14/2018 4:48:40 PM PDT by BBell
The roof of the enclosure that Valerio the jaguar escaped from at Audubon Zoo had been "compromised," according to a Saturday afternoon (July 14) update from zoo leaders. An investigation is still underway to determine how exactly the 3-year-old jaguar got out, killing six animals and injuring three others.
The zoo did not specify how the roof has been compromised or what type of damage had been sustained. Audubon Zoo spokeswoman Lauren Messina Conrad said zoo staff would "know more about the enclosure once we complete a thorough investigation."
No animals will be housed in the habitat until the investigation and repairs are complete, according to a news release.
The zoo was closed Saturday after Valerio after a zoo staff member realized the young jaguar was not in his enclosure around 7:20 a.m. The jaguar was located, sedated and returned to a safe habitat by 8:15 a.m. No human injuries were reported, but zoo staff are mourning the loss of six animals, which included four alpaca, a fox and an emu.
It is not immediately clear what may have caused Valerio's enclosure to become comprised. Parts of the zoo's Jaguar Jungle area were renovated in March, but the enclosure Valerio escaped from had not been updated, said Kyle Burks, vice president and managing director at Audubon Zoo.
"Our animals are our family. We are devastated by this loss," the release said. "The safety of our guests, staff, volunteers, and animals is our number one priority. We are taking this incident very seriously and working to investigate what happened to prevent a similar occurrence in the future."
Maggie Mae the fox, Elmo the emu and four alpacas -- Noel, Micia, Alexandria, and Lil Melody -- did not survive their encounter with Valerio
(Excerpt) Read more at nola.com ...
The Audubon Zoo is a zoo located in New Orleans, Louisiana.
correct
a PETArd probably opened it..
Just heard this story on the news; they are offering grief counselors to the staff (I kid you not). “Grief counseling” seems to be the 21st century version of work for those with “basket weaving” degrees...
I went on down to the Audubon Zoo
And they all asked for you
They all asked for you
Well, they even inquired about you
I went on down to the Audubon Zoo
And they all asked for you
The monkeys asked
The tigers asked
And the elephant asked me too
The slaughter house must keep a bunch of grief counselors on retainer.
That’s in a paragraph farther down in the article. I think I’d get me an ambulance chaser and sue for mental anguish or what ever they call it now.
I love that song. A Mardi Gras staple.
Goofy, isn’t it?
Anyway, thank God nobody was hurt or killed (seriously).
I'm sure the grief counseling industry is a multi-million dollar one, maybe multi-billion.
Yes, the in-house “grief counselor” has the office next to the in-house “chief diversity officer”...
So what are you saying? Animals are nobodies? My cats would beg to differ. They remind me all the time, annoying little rat eaters that they are.
People get upset when big kitties go big kitty on them.
“Save these eyes so green”. I’d bet it was one of the cat people.
Haven’t thought about Nastassja Kinski in years :)
Reminds me of a hung over cougar. They get mad when you wake them up.
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