ATLANTA — Zoo Atlanta is mourning the loss of a beloved mainstay at the zoo - Chelsea, a 20-year-old Sumatran tiger.
The Zoo announced Wednesday that it made the decision to euthanize the geriatric tiger due to chronic health conditions, such as kidney disease.
“This is a devastating loss for Chelsea’s care team and for Zoo Atlanta. Chelsea was a magnificent cat with a tremendous legacy here at the Zoo,” said Sam Rivera, DVM, Vice President of Animal Health. “While decisions like these are always heartbreaking and are never easy, our teams had reached a point where we knew that this was the most responsible and compassionate decision for Chelsea.”
Sumatran tigers, which tend to have a lifespan of 10 to 12 years in the wild, are considered geriatric after about 15. At nearly 21, Chelsea lived a long, fulfilling life beyond the typical lifespan for her species.
Chelsea lived in Zoo Atlanta’s John P. Imlay Tiger Habitat since 2006. In 2011, she gave birth to cubs Sohni and Sanjiv – the first Sumatran tigers born at the zoo in more than a decade. Both of them now live at other facilities and have both since had offspring of their own.
Following the tiger's death, a necropsy will be performed through the zoo’s partnership with the University of Georgia Zoo and Exotic Animal Pathology Service in the College of Veterinary Medicine.
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