PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) — Veterinarians at the Oregon Zoo euthanized an aging giraffe to end his suffering.
Akeem was found lying still Saturday in the giraffe barn, and keepers could do nothing to help him.
KGW reports (http://is.gd/jdXWVv ) they believe he succumbed to old age. He was 25. In the wild giraffes live 15 to 20 years.
Akeem means “great one” in Swahili. He stood 18 feet tall and weighed 2,200 pounds.
He sired three calves over the years in the zoo’s Africa Savanna exhibit.
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Information from: KGW-TV, http://www.kgw.com/
