Tulsa Zoo Tulsa Zoo News

TZFan said:
The zoo was closed today due to a security threat.

Tulsa Zoo Closed Following Phone Threat - NewsOn6.com - Tulsa, OK - News, Weather, Video and Sports - KOTV.com |
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I was there two days prior, and I assure everyone I was not the cause of a security threat, but it could have been the unbearable heat & humidity. (Summertime in Tulsa, OK always seems like one of the hottest places I've ever been.) All joking aside, I'm glad they take these things seriously. It cost the zoo a lot of unrealized revenue to close for a day.
 
Message today from Tulsa Zoo on death of Wheezy, oldest Cape buffalo in captivity:
"Yesterday we said goodbye to our beloved African Cape buffalo, Wheezy. At the age of 34, she was the oldest documented African Cape buffalo in human care. Animal Health and Animal Care staff determined that Wheezy's quality of life had significantly diminished due to complications from multiple geriatric conditions. To honor her at the end of her life, and to ensure she did not suffer, staff made the difficult decision to humanely euthanize Wheezy yesterday.

Wheezy was loved by everyone at the zoo. She was often referred to as "Mama," as she was known for being a fiercely protective mother in her younger days. While she lived in retirement, she would sometimes choose to explore the public portion of her home in the Mary K. Chapman Rhino Reserve. Zoo staff would gather around her exhibit just to get the chance to see her. Our zoo family is grateful that we were given the chance to know and care for her for so many years.

Zookeeper Eric Flossic cared for Wheezy for more than 15 years. Read his tribute to her below.

“As a zookeeper, your animals become a second family. Like a proud parent, you watch them grow and even have kids. You spend holidays with them, you think about their well-being when you’re away from work. For the past 15 years Wheezy was the queen of my zoo family. I feel very honored and blessed to have been able to share so much time with her. She will be missed greatly by all who had the chance to know her. Rest easy, Big Mama. You were truly a lifetime animal to work with.”"
 
That's a shame :(. She was the first (and only, until last year) Cape buffalo I'd ever seen. RIP Wheezy.
 
I uploaded a couple of photos to the Tulsa Zoo gallery of a cape buffalo I took in May, 2010. I assume them to be of Wheezy as she was the only one I saw. They're not great photos but, when that's all you got and you know there is no possibility of anymore, they look better.
 
An nice recent amenity added to the zoo is the St. John Family Den. It includes space for mothers who prefer to nurse in a quiet, more private setting; a quiet space for persons with autism; and an adult diaper-changing room. Good reuse of an older building that was most recently a gift shop, and long ago a small nocturnal animal house.
Family Den Opens at the Tulsa Zoo
 
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