Akron Zoo mourns the death of Gondar, its resident male Speke's gazelle
Gondar − the Akron Zoo's resident male Speke's gazelle − has died.
The zoo announced Friday that Gondar's health has been in decline over the past week and it was discovered that he had a mass on his lung.
"The difficult decision was made to humanely euthanize Gondar," the zoo said. "Necropsy results confirmed the substantial mass, and testing will be sent out to determine if its cancerous."
Born July 14, 2017, at the St. Louis Zoo, Gondar arrived at the Akron Zoo in 2019 for the opening of the new Pride of Africa area.
Gondar fathered three gazelle fawns at the Akron Zoo.
Three years ago, Gondar fractured his front leg and required corrective surgery.
“Gondar has made a significant impact on my career in animal care,” said Lauren McKenna, animal care manager for the hoofstock/primate team at the Akron Zoo, in a prepared statement. “Through the amazing care and dedication of my team and our vet staff, we were able to help him pull through a life-threatening injury and give him three additional years of life. Gondar taught us all to enjoy the little things and not to take life for granted.”
The Speke’s gazelles that are native to northern Somalia are considered endangered in the wild.
This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: Akron Zoo's resident Speke's gazelle has died
