The Saint Louis Zoo is mourning the death of one of its beloved Asian elephants, Rani. A 27-year-old female fainted on Friday after a stray dog was seen running in a non-public area near an elephant barn.
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Zoo officials explained in a press release that Rani was inside the house having dinner when the incident happened, but became upset after witnessing the elephant’s reaction to the dog.
“They saw Rani circling and vocalizing, all in a very short period of time, before she collapsed,” the zookeepers said in a statement.
Asian elephant in the zoo of St. Louis.
Raymond Boyd/Getty
While the dog was caught and handed over to a shelter, the Zoo’s elephant care and animal health teams were unable to revive Rani after emergency treatment.
“We are completely devastated. We are asking for the community’s input and support at this difficult time,” Saint Louis Zoo Director Michael Macek said in a statement released in a news release. “Our team of professional animal care experts did everything they could, but we couldn’t save Rani.”
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According to zoo officials, initial results of an autopsy performed by a pathologist showed that Rani already had some changes in her heart, but further tests are still being conducted. Rani arrived at the zoo in July 2001 at the age of five with her mum Ellie.
“She loved playing with her sisters Maliha and Priya. Growing up here in St. Louis, she learned from her mother, Ellie, how to be an amazing mother herself,” recalled Katie Pilgram-Kloppe, zookeeper of the zoo’s River’s Edge Habitat. garden in Missouri, in a statement shared in a news release.
“She had a great relationship with her animal care team and all the other elephants. When she was hanging out with her family, she made a unique screeching sound that her daughter Jade imitated,” she added.
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The zoo is home to a three-generation family of Asian elephants, including Rana’s two other children, Kenzi and Avi. According to the zoo’s website, the Asian elephant is currently facing a high risk of extinction due to habitat loss. Estimates show that there are fewer than 50,000 Asian elephants left in the wild.
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Source: HIS Education