Exhibit A: zebra: given the name Evidence by authorities, was found on the side of Highway 75 south of Atlanta last Tuesday. He is now in Auburn. CONTRIBUTED
The College of Veterinary Medicine at Auburn is currently playing host to a two-month-old zebra.
Tuesday morning last week, the zebra was found grazing off of highway 75 south of Atlanta. Authorities were unsure of where the animal came from, why it was there, or how long it had been grazing near exit 201.
Lt. Matt Garrison of the Butts County Sheriff’s Office was tending to a broken down vehicle on the highway and notified Noah’s Ark, an exotic animal rescue center located in Locust Grove, Ga., of the odd find.
With further inspection, the staff at Noah’s Ark found that Evidence, a name that stuck with the zebra after being referred to several times by the authorities as evidence, was injured.
Noah’s Ark contacted Auburn University’s School of Veterinary Science and made arrangements to have the animal transported and treated by Auburn’s veterinary team.
Once transported, it was discovered the zebra was suffering from a crushed pelvis, nerve damage, and a severed urethra. The zebra is a male and weighs 225 pounds and was also suffering from soft tissue and muscle injuries.
“The zebra had surgery Wednesday to repair the laceration and soft tissue injury,” said Huichu Lin, an equine specialist in Auburn’s Veterinary department. “He recovered from surgery and anesthesia that afternoon. Now he’s under intensive care and receiving medications several times a day.”
It is unknown where the zebra was going or who was transporting it. Like many exotic animals, a person must acquire a license to breed or own a zebra.
It has been reported by Sandra Eckstein of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution that no one in Georgia owns a breeding license for zebras and only one person has an ownership license but has claimed no knowledge in reference to this particular zebra.
“Little Evidence’s condition is still guarded. But he is eating well since recovered from surgery,” Lin said. “His wound is healing as expected. We hope he will continue to do better each day. He can not have visitors because he is easily stressed.”
Drew Henderson, a freshman in biomedical sciences, commented on the situation and wanted to know how a zebra got on the side of the highway in the first place.
“I think it says a lot about our vet program that Noah’s Ark would call us to take care of the animal,” Henderson said.
The surgeries for the zebra cost more than five thousand dollars. This is money that the rescue center will be unable to finance on their own.
Donations are being accepted to help with these costs, and anyone interested in making a donation can go to http://www.noahs-ark.org or call 770-957-0888.
Noah’s Ark houses more than 1,000 homeless animals, as well as children, and a zebra is an interesting addition to its already large family populated by several other exotic animals such as lions, tigers and bison.
