(CBS DETROIT) – On Monday, Dec. 6, the Detroit Zoo announced that a 16-year-old red panda has been euthanized due to a rapid decline in health.
Ta-Shi, the 16-year-old red panda at the Detroit Zoo, has been euthanized due to a decline in health. | Credit: Detroit Zoo
The female red panda, Ta-Shi, was euthanized on Friday, Dec. 3.
“At an exam last week to try to identify the cause of recent weight loss, a large tumor was found in one of her lungs, as well as nonregenerative anemia (her body was no longer making new red blood cells),” Detroit Zoo officials said in a statement on Facebook. “After medications to make her more comfortable did not seem to help, the difficult decision to humanely euthanize her was made.”
Ta-Shi was one of the oldest red pandas living in AZA zoos.
She was a mother to nine cubs during her 13 years at the Detroit Zoo. “She is mother, grandmother, great-grandmother, and great-great-grandmother to more than 20 pandas living today in other AZA-accredited zoos,” said zoo officials.
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