DENVER — After weeks of declining health, Denver Zoo announced it has euthanized its 13-year-old clouded leopard, Lisu.
Lisu had several medical conditions and staff at the zoo noticed a decline in her health over the past couple of weeks, the zoo said in a post on Facebook.
"It is with great sadness that we share the passing of our 13-year-old female clouded leopard, Lisu," Denver Zoo posted. "Lisu had several medical conditions our Animal Care and Veterinary Medicine teams were managing and after a significant decline in her health over the last two weeks, our teams made the difficult decision to humanely euthanize Lisu.
"Our Veterinary Medicine team will conduct a postmortem exam to better understand the full breadth of her condition. This decision was made to relieve Lisu of any suffering given her poor prognosis and she passed peacefully, surrounded by those who loved and cared for her throughout her life."
Lisu was born on March 19, 2011, at the Nashville Zoo. She was moved to Denver as a cub based on the Species Survival Plan recommendation and for the opening of the zoo's Toyota Elephant Passage, according to Denver Zoo.
Lisu was an incredible ambassador for her elusive and vulnerable species, birthing two cubs while at Denver Zoo, the zoo said.
"While loving our animals and providing them with the best possible care is incredibly rewarding, we are sometimes tasked with making extremely difficult decisions," the zoo said. "We’re heartbroken to say goodbye to Lisu and know that this beloved member of our animal family will be greatly missed by all those who had the pleasure of knowing her."
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