Escaped giraffe found dead

A giraffe that escaped from a container of zoo animals on the way to a breeding station in Prachin Buri was found dead in Chachoengsao province yesterday and a Facebook video indicated it may have been chased and knocked down by a motorcyclist.

The giraffe was found in a ditch in front of Sunrise Lagoon Hotel & Golf Club on Highway 304 along Chachoengsao-Phanom Sarakham route around 1.30pm. The animal was partially covered with lotus leaves in the ditch, police said.

A video clip on Facebook on

Tuesday showed a man driving his motorcycle and hitting a giraffe along Highway 304 in Chachoengsao. It was not clear at press time last night if the collision was what killed the giraffe.

Safari World Plc staffers and rescue workers tried to retrieve the carcass from the ditch. Veterinarians plan to investigate the cause of the animal’s death.

On Tuesday, 24 lorries with the animals in containers left Suvarnabhumi airport about 4pm. The destination was an animal breeding station in Mahaphot district of Prachin Buri.

The animals were imported by Safari World Plc, which operates a number of zoos in Thailand.

One of the lorries was carrying a container with three giraffes. As it was travelling along Highway 304 in Bang Khla district, two giraffes jumped from the back.

After being reported, a team of national park and wildlife officials at the 2nd Forest Conservation Office in Chon Buri’s Si Racha district tracked down and recaptured one giraffe with a tranquiliser shot, but there was no sign of the other one.

Comments lamenting its fate poured onto social media.

“Hope you reincarnate in a better world, lil giraffe,” said one.