Zoo where second lynx died should close, says animal welfare group

A ZOO is facing calls to close after it emerged that a second lynx was accidentally asphyxiated within days of the shooting and killing of Lillith the lynx, inset, who escaped from her enclosure at the seaside attraction.

Borth Wild Animal Kingdom near Aberyswyth, west Wales, has been criticised for having “no understanding of wild animal behaviour or welfare needs” by the Lynx UK Trust, which said a second cat had died after keepers at the zoo tried to move it to another enclosure using a dog noose.

In a statement on its Facebook page, the zoo confirmed that Nilly, an adult female who was unrelated to Lillith, had died after the decision was taken to move the animal to “a more suitable enclosure” when they were give 24 hours’ notice of an inspection.

Borth Wild Animal Kingdom said: “Unfortunately, there seems to have been a terrible handling error where it seems she twisted in the catch-pole and became asphyxiated.”

Lillith, an 18-month-old Eurasian lynx and twice the size of a domestic cat, was killed last Friday after the local authority received advice from a specialist veterinary surgeon that the risk to public wellbeing had increased from moderate to severe. Park staff said that the animal, which had been missing since October 29, did not pose a threat to humans and were “devastated and outraged” by her death.