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Jaguar Escapes Zoo; Kills Four Alpacas, One Emu And A Fox In One-Hour Killing Spree

Jaguar Escapes Zoo; Kills Four Alpacas, One Emu And A Fox In One-Hour Killing Spree

The animal has since been captured and return to its enclosure

Daisy Phillipson

Daisy Phillipson

An escaped jaguar had an absolute free-for-all at the Audubon Zoo in New Orleans after it was accidentally let out of its enclosure.


The animal escaped at around 7.20am (1.20pm UK time) Saturday morning before being captured, sedated and returned by the vet team an hour later, CBS News reports.

It would appear this was more than enough time for the jaguar to embark on a killing spree, mauling four alpacas, one emu and a fox, as well as injuring three others - two alpacas and another fox.

No humans were injured during the incident and luckily there are no plans to euthanise Valerio, the three-year-old male jaguar, because he was technically doing nothing wrong.

Of course, this doesn't make the incident any less harrowing, made even more cutting when you hear the killed animals' names - the dead alpacas were called Noel, Micia, Alexandria and Lil Melody, the emu was called Elmo, and the fox was named Maggie Mae.

In a statement, the zoo said: "The team responded immediately to the incident. Veterinarians had to prepare tranquillisers and position themselves to get a good line of sight. Once darted, the jaguar was sedated within minutes.

"We are still investigating how this happened. From our initial inspection, it appears the roof of the habitat was compromised. We are still investigating, and no animals will be housed in this enclosure until the investigation and repairs are completed.

"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.

"We perform drills annually and have protocols for this exact situation to ensure that emergencies of this kind are resolved as safely and quickly as possible."

The zoo's vice president, Joel Hamilton, went on to say that while the incident was heartbreaking, they will not put Valerio down because he "was doing what jaguars do".

PA

Hamilton added: "Our staff truly care about these animals, not just care for them. We have grief counsellors coming in to talk to staff to help them get through this."

Thoughts go out to all those grieving and more importantly, RIP to Noel, Micia, Alexandria, Lil Melody, Elmo and Maggie Mae. They will be greatly missed.

Source: CBS News

Featured Image Credit: Audubon Zoo/PA

Topics: US News, Animals