A 3-year-old elephant at a Kentucky zoo diagnosed with EEHV virus died Friday night, the zoo said.
Fitz, an elephant calf at the Louisville Zoo, was diagnosed June 28 with the viral infection that can be deadly and affects elephants worldwide. He was tired June 30, but eating and standing. His condition worsened, and he died during high nighttime treatment after 11 p.m., a zoo news release announced.
“We are deeply saddened by the loss of elephant Fitz,” Dan Maloney, the Louisville Zoo director, said. “Fitz held a special place within our entire extended zoo family. His presence at our zoo touched the hearts of our members, patrons and our entire community, inspiring a profound appreciation for elephants and their conservation.”
EEHV, or elephant endotheliotropic herpesvirus, can affect elephants, particularly young ones, that live in a zoo, in sanctuaries or in the wild.
The zoo realized Fitz was sick after another elephant “repeatedly placed her trunk in Fitz’s mouth, which is abnormal behavior for the animal,” a release said Thursday, and they also noticed he was lethargic. The Louisville Zoo sent a blood sample to the Smithsonian Zoo and got the result on Wednesday.
The release said other zoos offered medical expertise and sent blood and plasma donations.
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No vaccine for virus Fitz had, zoo says
The release said there is no vaccine for the virus, and the survival rate for elephants is 20%-30%. “Many elephants can fight off the virus when activated, but it is harder for weaned calves since they are no longer protected by their mother’s antibodies,” the release said.
Some signs of EEHV are lethargy, unwillingness to eat, rapid heartbeat and edema. The virus causes hemorrhagic disease, and once the EEHV is diagnosed, elephants receive antiviral medications, blood and plasma transfusions and stem cell and supportive therapies.
Punch and Mikki, the other two elephants in the zoo’s exhibit, have not shown signs of the infection. Other animals or people are not at risk from EEHV.
Fitz, was only the second elephant born at the zoo in its 50-year history. Mikki gave birth to Fitz on Aug. 2, 2019.
Mikki also birthed Scotty in March 2007 who died from complications of colic, which is common in elephants and horses.
Reach Ana Rocío Álvarez Bríñez at abrinez@gannett.com; follow her on Twitter at @SoyAnaAlvarez
