Have any zoo animals escaped?

An Entire Pride of Lions In November 2022, Taronga Zoo in Sydney, Australia was running its “Roar and Snore” program, in which guests spent the night camping at the zoo. Everything was going fine until early one morning, when a male and four cubs broke through the fence and escaped their enclosure.



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Zoo animal escapes happen rarely, about five times a year on average over the last five years, said Rob Vernon, spokesman for the Association of Zoos & Aquariums, which represents and accredits 213 zoos and aquariums in 47 states.

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Goldie the eagle (1965) In February 1965, London Zoo's male golden eagle escaped and spent nearly two weeks enthralling press photographers, birdwatchers and the general public as he glided around Regent's Park, eluding zookeepers' attempts at recapturing him. Your browser can't play this video.

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During the recent Sydney zoo breakout, four lion cubs and one adult lion wandered out of their exhibit before being swiftly captured.

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In April of 1921, a full grown male polar bear named Clown escaped from the Washington Park Zoo overnight and roamed the neighborhoods around Washington Park for a few hours before he was caught. This event was the inspiration for Stacy DeKeyser's new book for young readers, How to Catch a Polar Bear.

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On average, captive animals (especially mammals) live longer than wild animals. This may be due to the fact that zoos provide refuge against diseases, competition with others of the same species and predators.

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Six Species Saved From Extinction by Zoos As of 2017, 1,000 animals had been restored to the wild, while thousands more were living in zoo environments. Przewalski's Horse: The only truly wild species left in the world, Przewalski's Horse is native to the grasslands of Central Asia.

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An initial investigation found that “an integrity issue” with a containment fence was to blame, and the animals were moved to a secure holding area pending a full review. Police had also been called to the zoo, with Commissioner Karen Webb telling local media: “It's not very often we get called to lions on the loose.”

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On October 23, 1975, the 'fully-grown' Indian elephant reportedly went 'berzerk' before he escaped from the zoo.

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“Yes, in a lot of cases it is still impossible, especially if the animals have been traumatised or were very young when captured. And you need to be very careful about introducing diseases to a wild population. But for some animals, if we proceed scientifically and thoughtfully, it can be done.”

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The unwanted adult animals are sometimes sold to “game” farms where hunters pay to kill them; some are killed for their meat and/or hides. Other “surplus” animals may be sold to smaller, more poorly run zoos or, worse, to laboratories for experiments. For more information, see PETA's factsheet about zoos.

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