GREEN BAY, Wis. — Three North American river otters at the NEW Zoo died suddenly last week, leaving zoo staffers devastated and in search of answers.
The two pups and their mother, all of whom had appeared fine Wednesday afternoon, became extremely ill the next day, Zoo Director Neal Anderson said Tuesday night. The pups were part of the first litter born at the zoo, which is a Brown County-run facility in Suamico.
The mother, named Bonnie, had turned 2 on April 29. The pups, born March 11, had yet to be named. The facility's remaining two adult and two young otters have been placed in isolation.
"We're all just devastated," Anderson said. "They were all so active, and it was like someone just turned a switch off."
He said a veterinarian suspects a fast-moving infection, possibly viral, struck the animals. But officials won't be certain of the cause of death until they have the results of tests done on the animals. That could take three to four weeks.
All four pups had received routine vaccinations Wednesday and appeared to handle them well, Anderson said. But on Thursday morning, a zoo worker found two pups lying ill. Not long after, a zoo visitor noticed their mother experiencing severe digestive problems.
"Our veterinarian was right there on the spot," Anderson said. "We pulled (Bonnie) right off-exhibit and got antibiotics into her immediately."
The pups died Thursday. Bonnie died about 28 hours after falling ill.
Because officials don't know what killed the animals, the zoo has separated the remaining four.
The pups' father, 6-year-old Skokie, had been in the same enclosure with Bonnie and her pups, but has not shown signs of illness. Anderson said Minnie, an 18-year-old female, is not exhibiting symptoms but has been quarantined inside the facility's medical building as a precaution.
The fact that Skokie appears fine indicates that the illness might have passed from Bonnie to her pups, Anderson said.
And because zookeepers aren't sure what the illness is, they are taking precautions when handling the animals. Anderson said that's to reduce the risk that the illness might spread between animals or, potentially, to zoo staff.
The zoo is planning a media announcement Wednesday.
Follow Doug Schneider on Twitter: @PGDougSchneider
