Folly Farm have announced that one of their giraffes passed away yesterday (October 20)Rafiki, a popular character at the park was taken ill at the end of last week.
A Folly farm spokesperson said “It is with great sadness we are announcing this news.”
“Our 14 year old, Rothschild hybrid giraffe has passed away. Rafiki was a real character within our herd and had been with us since our giraffe enclosure opened in 2009. He will be greatly missed by our visitors and all of the Folly Farm family. Our thoughts are with the giraffe keepers and the rest of the zoo team who cared for him on a daily basis and for whom his loss is most greatly felt.””Rafiki first showed signs of being unwell on Friday having gone off his food. Our vets were called immediately but despite treatment his condition worsened over the weekend and he sadly passed away on Sunday.”
A post mortem revealed the cause of death was peritonitis as a result of bladder stones.
