Zoo euthanizes polar bear that used to be in Madison
Vets determine Nanuq had liver cancer
POWELL, Ohio — The Columbus Zoo and Aquarium in Ohio says it has euthanized a 29-year-old male polar bear that was at the Henry Vilas Zoo in Madison for more than 20 years.
Veterinarians determined the polar bear, Nanuq, had liver cancer with limited treatment options.
Nanuq fathered five surviving offspring in a species with a low reproductive rate.
Three are cubs born to the Columbus Zoo’s two female polar bears last November. Nanuq also fathered Nora, who moved from Columbus to the Oregon Zoo, and Luna, who remains at the Buffalo Zoo.
Officials say Nanuq was rescued as an orphaned cub in Alaska in 1988 and lived at the Henry Vilas Zoo in Wisconsin. He was moved to Buffalo in 2009 and to Columbus in 2012.
The zoo said Nanuq surpassed the median life expectancy for such a bear by eight years.
COPYRIGHT 2023 BY CHANNEL 3000. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. THIS MATERIAL MAY NOT BE PUBLISHED, BROADCAST, REWRITTEN OR REDISTRIBUTED.
