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Sunday, Jul 09, 2006
B.C. group launches zoo boycott over giraffe's death

(CBC) - An animal protection group is organizing a boycott of the Greater Vancouver Zoo after the recent death of a baby giraffe.

Liberation B.C. spokesperson Jan Olson said members of the group planned to protest in front of the zoo on Sunday over what she alleges is a long list of broken promises from the facility located in the Fraser Valley community of Aldergrove, east of Vancouver.

Olson alleged that the female giraffe's death on June 29, eight days after it was born, raises serious questions about the zoo's ability to care for its animals.

The British Columbia Society for Prevention of Cruelty to Animals has launched an investigation into what happened during and after the troubled birth, which required the assistance of zoo staff.

A news release from the zoo had said autopsy results showed the calf had several rib fractures and pneumonia.

Eileen Drever, a senior animal cruelty investigator, said the agency will try to find out why the zoo decided to breed an 18-year-old animal that had never given birth before. Drever said it was very old, considering that the average lifespan of a giraffe is 20 years.

But a veterinarian with the Calgary Zoo, Doug Whiteside, told CBC News he doubts the age of the mother had anything to do with the baby's death. He said it's common for giraffes in their late teens to give birth in captivity.

The B.C. zoo's animal-care manager, Jamie Dorgan, said giraffes have been known to bear offspring up until they're 25.

The zoo, located in the Fraser Valley community of Aldergrove, east of Vancouver, is currently facing animal cruelty charges for allegedly providing inadequate shelter for Hazina the hippo.

The matter is scheduled to be heard in a provincial court in Surrey on July 31.