After a lengthy rescue effort, officials at Cheyenne Mountain Zoo on Friday night euthanized a 20-year-old female giraffe after she was unable to recover from an afternoon fall.
The giraffe, named Uhura, was accepting a cracker from a zoo visitor when another giraffe stepped into her and she lost her footing. Uhura fell down a slope and couldn’t stand up. Zoo staff and firefighters using rescue equipment worked four hours to get Uhura to a standing position but found she could not remain standing on her own.
Uhura was then moved to a flat area and was sitting up, but not getting up. Her condition continued to decline, until veterinarians decided to euthanize Uhura.
Uhura had 10 offspring from 1995 through 2009, including seven females and three males. Five still live at Cheyenne Mountain Zoo. Yesenia Robles, The Denver Post
