The Faculty of Veterinary Medicine of the Autonomous University of Barcelona (UAB) is investigating the cause of death of Kanelo, a one-year-old orangutan, at the zoo in the Catalan capital. The animal organization Plataforma Zoo XXI has denounced this Wednesday that Kanelo, a male born just over a year ago, died on May 15, 2022 on Monday. The platform, awaiting the results of the animal’s autopsy, anticipates that the The male and the five female orangutans that remain in the municipal facility have “low levels of animal welfare”, which can be observed, according to animalists, “clearly in the baldness of the specimens”.
For his part, a spokesman for the Barcelona Zoo regretted the death of the calf and assured that the facility’s veterinary team observed on Monday that the animal was immobile inside the enclosure and “when they entered the facility to examine it, they confirmed the death ”. “No anomaly in the behavior of the calf had been detected previously,” admits the spokesman for the municipal facility. Zoo veterinarians conducted preliminary examinations and determined that a “possible cause of death could be a respiratory problem.” Despite this, different analyzes were carried out and the UAB Faculty of Veterinary Medicine will be in charge of determining the cause of death “which in the cases of young wild animals can occur suddenly.”
The deceased animal is the son of Jawi, an orangutan who is now 26 years old and who was also born at the Barcelona Zoo. The father is the male Karl who is the same age as the mother and who was born in Dublin. Before Kanelo’s death, there were seven critically endangered Bornean orangutans.
Lonardo Anselmi of the Zoo XXI Platform denounces that the animal organization has been questioning both the exchange of animals between zoos to reproduce endangered species and the conditions in which they live for years. In March of this year, they denounced that the orangutans “have been enduring the remodeling works of the facility for nine months.” Zoo XXI assures that these works are stressing the group of apes and that the deceased calf “only knew the confinement, the noise of the works and the exhibition to the public.”
Animalists say that baldness in animals “is an infallible indicator that something is wrong.” Zoo XXI maintains that these claps are due to “aberrant self-inflicted behaviors [si es en antebrazos y piernas] and produced by third parties [si es en cabeza o espalda]”. For his part, the Zoo spokesman assures that all the specimens are “in perfect health.” Those responsible for the installation defend that during the works the “well-being of the orangutans has been maintained, being able to enjoy interior patios”. They also defend that the fur coats are due to the fact that these animals “complement their fur until they are 5-7 years old”.
Rosi Carro, scientific coordinator of Zoo XXI, warns: “We are going to bring these facts to the attention of the authorities, so that the reasons for the death of this calf are clarified. The impunity with which the Barcelona Zoo acts and the abandonment of functions by the City Council is intolerable”. Carro maintains that the facility where the orangutans are kept prioritizes display over animal welfare. “We can no longer do anything for the calf and it is to be expected that this situation is causing great suffering in the mother and the rest of the individuals,” laments the scientific coordinator. According to Zoo XXI, orangutans – like humans – share family ties with their young until they are seven years old. The animalists ask to transfer the orangutans to a “sanctuary” where they are not exposed to the public. The UAB Faculty of Veterinary Medicine will be in charge of clarifying that a one-year-old orangutan died at the Barcelona Zoo.
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