Ailing giraffe dies at Santa Barbara Zoo

October 26, 4:01 PMSanta Barbara Pet ExaminerKaren Lee Stevens

Previous Next

Comment Print Email RSS Subscribe

Subscribe

Get alerts when there is a new article from the Santa Barbara Pet Examiner. Read Examiner.com's terms of use.

Email Address   Include other special offers from Examiner.com Terms of Use

Taru, a 17-year-old male giraffe poses for a picture.
Photo by Sheri Horiszny

Taru, a 17-year-old male giraffe who resided at the Santa Barbara Zoo, has died.

“We had been treating him for several issues over the past months, and he seemed to be doing fairly well,” said Sheri Horiszny, Director of Animal Programs in a press release. “However, he became suddenly worse Friday morning, and the decision was made to humanely euthanize him.”

A necropsy has been performed, though the results will not be available for several weeks. It is believed that his final ailment was consistent with the challenges of old age. His body was transported to Los Angeles, where he was cremated on Saturday morning. At age 17, he had lived longer than most male giraffes.

“Taru touched the lives of countless Zoo visitors and the professional staff who cared for him for almost two decades of his long life here,” said Rich Block, Zoo CEO. “Losing Taru leaves an empty spot in the experiences of the thousands of guests who saw him – or were slimed by his long tongue during a feeding on the giraffe deck. He had a unique personality and I miss him.”

Taru was born at the Oklahoma City Zoo on June 23, 1992, and came to Santa Barbara on June 16, 1993. He was a Baringo (or Rothschild’s) giraffe, which are found in Uganda and in western Kenya. It is believed that his name was taken from the Taru Desert, what is now Tsavo National Park, a vast arid region of Kenya, Tanzania, and Somalia.

The Zoo’s only male giraffe, Taru produced four offspring. One is still living: Eritrea, born in February 2000, who was recently transferred to the Tulsa Zoo as part of a national cooperative breeding program of the Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA).

Taru was not related to Gemina, the Zoo’s famous “crooked necked giraffe,” who passed away last year at the age of 21. They did breed, in 1999, producing a female offspring named Kia, now deceased.

To learn more about the Santa Barbara Zoo, visit their Web site.