Otter pup at Woodland Park Zoo dies tragically

Visitors and staff of Seattle’s Woodland Park Zoo are mourning the death of one of the baby otters after he died in a tragic accident.

The Woodland Park Zoo confirmed that one of the two otter pups died after getting wedged between a ramp and a platform. The baby otter, Trout, was born this March.

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“Our animal keeper team and staff are absolutely devastated. The passing of a beloved animal is never easy, but a loss like this is particularly emotional because we wish there was something else we could have done to save Trout,” Animal Curator Erin Sullivan said in a prepared statement. Sullivan leads animal care for the animals in the zoo’s Living Northwest Trail, including otters.

“The team was really remarkable this morning,” Sullivan continued. “They are grieving, but also still finding ways to show up for each other and all of the other animals in their care.”

Animal keepers responded in under five minutes after Trout got stuck between a ramp and a platform in his enclosure. They attempted to resuscitate the otter with the help of Animal Health, but he did not survive.

The ramp and platform have been used for years by numerous adult and young otters and have never resulted in any injuries prior to today. The space is being modified and re-assessed immediately to evaluate for any other possible safety updates.

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Trout and his sister, Dory, just recently learned to swim.

“Animal keepers will provide extra attention and care to (parents) Valkyrie and Dory in the coming days to ensure their wellbeing as they adapt to this loss,” the zoo stated.

Frank Sumrall is a content editor at MyNorthwest. You can read his stories here and you can email him here.

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