NEWS · B2 Level - Part 3

Oldest Southern Rhino in the US Dies at 56

Visitors and staff at Zoo Knoxville are mourning the passing of the oldest rhinoceros in the United States.

Level: B2 · 32 sentences

Transcript

  1. Visitors and staff at Zoo Knoxville are mourning the passing of the oldest rhinoceros in the United States.
  2. Dolly was a southern white rhino who spent decades living at the Tennessee zoo.
  3. According to the Association of Zoos and Aquariums,
  4. most southern white rhinos live about 36 and a half years.
  5. We have been caring for Dolly, a southern white rhino, here at the zoo for around 50 years,
  6. um... one of the single oldest rhinos under human care in the world, actually.
  7. And like all of our animals, and people for that matter, they get old.
  8. And when they get old, they have things go wrong with them, just like they do with us.
  9. We have to make quality-of-life decisions about these animals.
  10. Most of the time, you know, they're getting perfect vet care.
  11. They're getting perfect keeper care, incredible diets.
  12. So, they live very long under human care.
  13. Specialists from the University of Tennessee College of Veterinary Medicine
  14. and Dolly's zoo veterinary team made the tough decision to euthanize her.
  15. When these animals start to get old, we do focal assessments on them, quality-of-life assessments and...
  16. looking at five or six different parameters to determine that quality of life, so we can quantify it and measure it.
  17. When we come to that point where we think we need to make the decision to humanely euthanize them.
  18. We came to that decision as a team.
  19. We got with the keepers and the vets, all in a room, and went over the focal scores,
  20. and made sure it was time.
  21. Cuz it's not something you want to do too early, but very much so you don't want to do it too late either.
  22. Ending Dolly's suffering was the humane thing to do,
  23. but losing a cherished Zoo Knoxville resident has been difficult.
  24. This is a really emotional time. It's a hard time. It's a necessary time.
  25. Our guests are attached to her.
  26. Our volunteers are attached to her.
  27. Our team members are attached to her.
  28. You got an animal that's been here for 50 years, that spanned a whole lot of people's time here at the zoo.
  29. Part of Dolly's legacy will be educating the public about the conservation of this endangered species
  30. and the horrors of rhino poaching.
  31. Zoo Knoxville is known for their southern white rhinos born here. We had 10 of them born here from Dolly alone.
  32. Dolly, the oldest southern white rhino in the United States, was 56 years old.