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Female giraffe euthanized at Pittsburgh Zoo & Aquarium after bone condition in leg worsens

Sox, a Masai giraffe, interacts with Spencer, a zebra that shared her exhibit, at the Pittsburgh Zoo & Aquarium. The female giraffe was euthanized on Jan. 17, 2025, after a degenerative bone condition grew worse, zoo officials said.
Paul Selvaggio
/
Courtesy of the Pittsburgh Zoo & Aquarium
Sox, a Masai giraffe, interacts with Spencer, a zebra that shared her exhibit, at the Pittsburgh Zoo & Aquarium. The female giraffe was euthanized on Jan. 17, 2025, after a degenerative bone condition grew worse, zoo officials said.

The Pittsburgh Zoo & Aquarium on Sunday announced the death of its 17-year-old female Masai giraffe, saying she was euthanized two days earlier because of a degenerative bone condition that grew worse.

The giraffe, named Sox, was one of the zoo's most beloved residents, along with the male giraffe Lewis, zoo officials said in a statement. Sox had been treated for chronic degeneration of bones in her left foreleg since the summer, according to the statement.

The condition grew worse last week, and Sox did not respond to pain-management efforts, zoo officials said. After working with a veterinarian and other experts who specialize in caring for giraffes and hooved animals in the U.S., zoo officials said they euthanized Sox on Friday because they determined they could not improve her quality of life.

“Lewis may be the crowd-pleaser, but Sox was one of the keepers’ favorites,” said zoo lead keeper Lisa Caruso. “She was smart and curious and loved to train and learn new things, lie in the sun, and eat bananas. Sox especially loved her friend Spencer the zebra, with whom she shared her exhibit.”

Sox was born in 2007 at the Franklin Park Zoo in Boston, during the Red Sox' sweep of the Colorado Rockies in the World Series. Zoo officials said her name was inspired by the victorious baseball team as well as her white ankles.

She resided at the Pittsburgh Zoo since March 2013. The Masai giraffe is the largest species of giraffe and can be found in central and southern Kenya, as well as in Tanzania.

The animals are considered to be endangered by the International Union for Conservation of Nature, the global authority on the conservation status of wild animals and plants, zoo officials said in their statement. They invited zoo guests to share recollections of Sox on the zoo's social media platforms.

Cindi Lash