The young tur that was out of its enclosure at Paignton Zoo is safe and well.
The female West Caucasian tur – a kind of small, shy mountain goat – was spooked by vets yesterday. It went to ground in dense undergrowth and staff stood back so as not to cause it stress.
Paignton Zoo spokesperson Phil Knowling said: “At about 4:30pm we got a message to say the goat was in a neighbouring garden. We sent staff up there right away. Once the animal had left the Zoo grounds, we had to wait for the police to come, as we aren’t allowed to use our dart gun off-site without their supervision.”
A police unit came from Exeter, and then one of the Zoo’s in-house vets was able to use a dart gun to tranquilise the animal. It took flight, went through another garden and jumped back into the Zoo grounds before succumbing to the tranquiliser. Vets and keepers were then able to collect the animal and return her safely to her paddock.
“We gave it space and hoped it would return to its enclosure. It is a shy and nervy animal. While it did end up in a neighbour’s garden, we are all very glad it is now safe and well. Thank you to the police, to our neighbours and to everyone who was involved in the whole episode.”
Paignton Zoo is a registered charity. For more information go to www.paigntonzoo.org.uk or ring 01803 697500.
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