A 10-year-old red panda named Sakura has died at the Toronto Zoo. This is just three weeks after the death of her baby.<\/p>\n
The Toronto Zoo announced on social media on the 24th that Sakura had died overnight from cardiac arrest. The zoo said that Sakura had been showing health problems for the past few months and that initial tests suggest that she died from cardiac arrest.<\/p>\n
The zoo explained that “no neurological abnormalities were found in the brain MRI scan,” and that “it is unclear whether the cardiac arrest was caused by a heart problem or a systemic disease, so additional tests are being conducted.”<\/p>\n
Sakura’s death is a tragic incident that occurred just three weeks after a male red panda cub died six weeks after being born. The Toronto Zoo has also recently reported the deaths of moose ‘Trilli’ and Masai giraffe.<\/p>\n
Sakura was transferred from the Vancouver Zoo to the Toronto Zoo earlier this year to retire. However, shortly after arriving in Toronto, it was confirmed that she was pregnant, and on June 13, she gave birth to two red panda cubs.<\/p>\n
The zoo is currently doing everything it can to save the remaining female panda cub, “Bigi.” “Bigi is currently two months old and is gaining weight quickly through formula milk,” the zoo said. Bigi is weighed after each feeding, has her temperature checked twice a day, and receives daily checkups from a veterinarian.<\/p>\n
The zoo added that “Bigi is being fully cared for by the wildlife management team, and her habitat meets all biosecurity and environmental requirements.”<\/p>\n
Toronto residents expressed their deepest condolences to Sakura’s death, expressing concern over the zoo’s recent animal deaths. “I am concerned about the unusually high number of animals dying recently,” one social media user said.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"