Cause of Death for Giraffe at Montgomery Zoo Identified
An autopsy shows that a giraffe which died at the Montgomery Zoo had a knotted rope inside its intestines.
A post-mortem report shows the rope led to an intestinal blockage, and that resulted in aspiration pneumonia which killed the animal.
A 12-year-old male giraffe named Willie was found dead at the zoo in December. It didn’t have a history of medical problems before that.
Officials believe the rope was mixed in with hay that the giraffe ate. Zoo program services manager Steven Pierce says the zoo purchased the hay from a provider.
Pierce says the rope inside the giraffe isn’t the type used by the zoo.
Willie had been at the Montgomery Zoo for 10 years.
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