Castration of Hippo in Israeli Zoo Ends in Tragedy

A hippopotamus at an Israeli safari park near Tel Aviv died during a rare castration operation. Austrian veterinarian, Chris Walzer and two colleagues, German Robert Hermes and Thiery Petit from France, went to Israel to do the operations. The group had carried out the procedure only two times before, and were still gaining experience. The Austrian vet said the hippo, named Lieber, died after receiving a second dose of anesthetic. The vets administered the second dose when they prepared to repair a suture that had opened up after the castration was completed. The Ramat Gan Park had decided to castrate six of the more potent males to reduce the high number of births at the park — numbering between five and six per year. In a last-ditch attempt to re-start Lieber's heart, Hermes jumped on his large body to no avail. Four other hippo males had successfully undergone the procedure and another was scheduled for later on Wednesday. The Ramat Gan Safari Park herd, numbering some 40 animals, is the largest in captivity in the world. Park officials said they feared that if the population were to grow any larger the animals would become aggressive towards each other. A park official said that although some hippos had been transferred to a number of zoos and parks around the world, there was little demand, as most did not want to keep more than one or two.

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[silverscreenname]

the lesson here is don't cut off nuts.

[Quebecboys]

I think I've heard the response before...

It's because the testosterone present in their balls will still be producing, so the male hippo will still crave for reproducing, but without success. By psychology, if animal cant reproduce, it can cause much anger and confusion in the animal mind

[1990banks]

Just keep fewer hippos instead of castrating them.

People castrate anything these days

humans/dogs/cats/cows/goats/ho­rses/sheep/pigs/hippos/lions/t­igers/monkeys/donkeys etc all in the name of population control.

Poor animals

[zoidbetag]

@sonbuhitsunei Oh don't be silly. We will soon kill ourselves in some mass nuclear conflict or some shit like that. That is if we don't grow up and do what's best for all.

You see, people don't need to be castrated. People can be talked into not doing/doing certain things even though they go against instinct sometimes. That's what separates us from animals, since society became a bigger part of our identity. Look at China and the 1child per family system.

[sonbuhitsunei]

@zoidbetag The same could actually be said of human beings...truth is, if you release a human into the wild, and I mean, the REAL wild, like, the deep jungles of Africa or South America- alone...chances are quite high that they would die. Soon. So...since humans are overpoplating the Earth and we can't just release them into the wild so they dont overcrowd our cities...shouldn't we then castrate men? Personally I think the world would be better off if fewer guys had their balls.

[MichaelVoz]

It wasn't the castration that killed it. They put too much tranquilizer into its body. Too much tranquilizer will kill an animal. That's why people have to be REALLY careful about tranquilizer dosage. Too little, and the animal could become disoriented and angry, and could hurt itself. Too much, and the animal's heart could stop. The narrator said that the zoo has only done this a few times. They weren't experienced enough.

[karthikpanyala]

well....they did succeed in reducing the numbers.

[Kayoss13212]

i bet the hippo probably would've chosen death after getting his balls cut off.

[aproductions]

Letting them go would be too much like right. SMH!

[zoidbetag]

It has no idea how to fend for itsself, because it lives in captivity....if you let it in the wild it will 100% die, because it has no instincts.And the castration would have done more good, than bad....but aah well, nobody is perfect....this is called a VET FAIL!

[Dinoraptor101]

well honey better give him a chance to fight for his survival..

or you prefer castration huh, wish you were that Hippo! maybe then you'll think of the right answer instead of being pure stubborn :s