Tapir Doutzen died at AquaZoo Friesland

Sad news from AquaZoo Friesland. The zoo in Leeuwarden has to do without tapir female Doutzen from now on. The only 3-year-old darling of the public passed away last night. The cause of death is still being investigated.

The tapirs are a very popular species with both caretakers and visitors to AquaZoo Friesland. Head of animal care Stephanie Jessen explains, "Doutzen was the favorite of the caretakers because she was always very affectionate and liked to be cuddled. But in recent months she lost a lot of weight despite her healthy appetite. We did several tests to find out what was going on, but unfortunately always without results."

Listless

Thursday morning, caretakers found Doutzen totally listless in the stall. "This was not her normal behavior. Veterinarian Jacques Kaandorp was called in immediately. The keepers then kept a constant eye on her. However, the medication administered did not help after which Doutzen died," Jessen said.

Section

So Doutzen turned out to be less than four years old. Today she will be transferred to the Faculty of Veterinary Medicine in Utrecht for autopsy. Episode 2 of the weekly docusoap Us Dierentún on Omrop Fryslan features a nice item about the tapirs. In the May 1 broadcast, the veterinarian visits Doutzen to examine her. In that broadcast more may also be revealed about the cause of death.

Farewell

Just last year, Doutzen gave birth to her first and only cub: Tinus (now 10 months old). Male Epke and Tinus said goodbye this morning. Jessen says: "They did this mainly by licking her face and making squeaky sounds that you normally never hear with tapirs. So they are really sad about it. And so are we."