An Asian elephant calf that had been battling life-threatening illnesses since it was born at Melbourne Zoo seven weeks ago has died.
The calf, named Willow, was born on 15 June with a congenital condition rare to Asian elephants, which left her unable to stand.
The condition, congenital carpal flexure, meant Willow was unable to straighten the ankles on her two front feet, which also left her unable to stand up to suckle from her mother, Num-Oi.
Zookeepers bottle-fed Willow and gave her 24-hour care, while equine specialists splinted her legs in an attempt to strengthen and correct them, but her condition remained critical throughout. Willow struggled to feed properly, even from the bottle, and zookeepers began feeding her intravenously.
Twelve days ago, the keepers said Willow had developed a serious blood-borne infection.
She was treated with antibiotics but veterinarians warned that the infection carried the risk of spreading to other body organs, causing potentially life-threatening problems. Ultrasound scans taken at the time revealed the infection may have affected her heart function.
While the zoo was yet to reveal the cause of death, a spokeswoman issued a short statement on Tuesday.
“Extremely sad news this morning that we have lost Willow,” she said. “The team did absolutely everything possible to pull her through and everyone here is feeling the loss hugely.
“It has been a very complex case.”
More information is expected to be released on Tuesday afternoon.
The news followed some hopeful moments in Willow’s short life, with zookeepers revealing last month that she had managed to stand for short periods of time. She was also beginning to bond with her mother.
However, her medical condition had never been seen in captive elephant calves before.
Willow was conceived through artificial insemination using sperm from an elephant at Perth Zoo. Num-Oi also lost her first calf, Sanook, in 2013, who died in an accident aged 11 months ago while playing with a hanging tyre.
People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (Peta) Australia’s campaign coordinator, Claire Fryer, said elephants should not be bred in captivity.
“Given the lack of stimulation and exercise and the inbreeding inherent at zoos, the infant-mortality rate for elephants is almost triple the rate in the wild, yet Melbourne Zoo continues to breed these intelligent animals in an effort to churn out more cash cows,” Fryer said.
“This is the second of Num-Oi’s babies she has now watched die. Zoos around the world have closed their elephant exhibits or announced plans to phase them out citing their own inability to meet the significant needs of these animals. It’s time for Melbourne Zoo to do the same.”
