CHENNAI: In a bizarre and unfortunate incident, a leopard reportedly died inside a squeeze cage at Arignar Anna Zoological Park (AAZP), popularly known as Vandalur Zoo, on Monday evening when veterinarians were attempting to collect nasal swab samples for Covid-19 test.
Squeeze sampling is a routine method, where animals are put in a squeeze cage to immobilize it and the veterinarian collects samples. Reliable sources told TNIE after the recent ‘mysterious’ death of a four-year-old male lion and 70 staff members testing positive for the coronavirus, Vandalur Zoo was shut down and authorities have increased the monitoring protocols.
“As a precautionary measure, samples are being collected from several animals, including big cats. The sample was successfully collected from the leopard, but a problem was encountered during the squeeze cage operation of the animal which then resulted in the death of the animal,” sources told TNIE.
Arignar Anna Zoological Park director Karunapriya immediately ordered an internal inquiry into the circumstances that led to the animal’s death during the operation. Sources said the postmortem of the animal will be conducted on Tuesday, which would reveal the exact cause of the death of the leopard. In the last one year, Vandalur Zoo has lost three lions, three tigers and 14 ostriches.