All five meerkats at the Philadelphia Zoo have died within less than a month, with zoo officials suspecting dye poisoning as the cause of death.
Named Nkosi, Lula, Nya, Kgala, and Ari, the meerkats were brought to the Philadelphia Zoo in 2013 as a group of siblings.
“We suspect that they may have accidentally consumed something toxic,” Amy Shearer, the chief experience officer at the Philadelphia Zoo, told CBS News. “We have used this animal dye… for over 30 years.”
The dye, Nyanzol-D, is used to mark and differentiate animals, Rachel Metz, the zoo’s vice-president of animal wellbeing, told CBS Philadelphia.
It was used on the meerkats on 1 June, zoo officials told the Associated Press. After the dye was used, one meerkat was found dead 30 minutes later, and the other four started showing signs of sickness soon after. Necropsy results are pending.
“Our staff spend more time with these animals than they do with their own families or even their pets at home,” Metz told Philadelphia ABC affiliate Action News.
“So there’s a real legitimate bond they feel with the animals, and obviously they’re devastated right now.”
Nyanzol-D used to mark and differentiate animals
Officials at the US zoo are now working with the US Department of Agriculture and the Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA) to identify what caused the deaths.
Elsewhere, Zoo Miami in Florida has apologised for offering an encounter with a kiwi, New Zealand’s national bird, as the animals are known for being reclusive and nocturnal.
Last month, Zoo Miami’s communications director Ron Magill told Radio New Zealand: “I immediately went to the zoo director, and I said, we have offended a nation.”
Zoo Miami said in a statement: “The concerns expressed by have been taken very seriously and as a result, effective immediately, the ‘kiwi encounter’ will no longer be offered.”
