(CTN News) – A red kangaroo reportedly escaped from the Chiang Mai Zoo on May 29, 2024, and a car found it on the road leading to the Doi Suthep-Pui National Park in Chiang Mai.
A viral video, shot around 7:50 a.m. on May 29th, sparked anxiety among netizens about the kangaroo’s welfare and the potential threat of stray dogs. The red kangaroo was reported to be two years and six months old.
For the second day in a row, around 40 policemen from Chiang Mai Zoo and Doi Suthep-Pui National Park searched on foot for the escaped kangaroo within a one-kilometer radius early on May 30th. Traces of the kangaroo, including excrement and footprints, had been discovered deep in the Doi Suthep jungles, but the animal remained at large.
Unfortunately, at 2:30 PM, Chiang Mai cops discovered the red kangaroo dead in an area beneath the Huai Chang Khian waterfall, 1.8 kilometers from Chiang Mai Zoo.
Officers initially assumed that the kangaroo had inadvertently fallen into the waterfall and was unable to climb back up. According to National Park authorities, no evidence of other animals’ bites or scratches was found.
Consequently, vets will conduct an autopsy on the red kangaroo to identify the exact cause of death. TPN said that no further information is available about how the kangaroo fled from the zoo.
ORIGINAL STORY: 2-Year-Old Kangaroo Escapes from Chiang Mai Zoo
Staff at the Chiang Mai Zoo are frantically hunting for a female red kangaroo that escaped while keepers were cleaning its cage on Wednesday morning. Keepers were cleaning the cage and preparing a food for the two-year-old kangaroo when it bolted at 7.50 a.m.
“The kangaroo unexpectedly jumped towards the cage door. Staff attempted to stop it, but the kangaroo rapidly hopped away through the zoo entrance,” Chiang Mai Zoo director Wuthichai Muangman said said.
When dogs barked, the kangaroo appeared scared as it headed up Huai Kaew Road towards Doi Suthep before turning into the hamlet in front of the navy seismic research station. Officials discovered its footsteps near the Khun Chang Khian stream, near a village, he said.
The zoo’s administration has asked residents to report any sightings of the kangaroo. Zoo personnel have also been looking for a drone to help with the search.
Mr Wuthichai stated that he did not want the kangaroo to reach a large forest, and he was also concerned that dogs would harm it. The zoo now has 23 kangaroos, including three male breeders and 15 females.