Ben Gray, Atlanta Journal-Constitution / AP
What the heck happened?
"Our zebras were being exercised in an outdoor pen as usual that day when something startled him," Crystal Drake, spokesperson for the Ringling Bros. & Barnum and Bailey Circus, tells Paw Nation. "Some noise or something in a far parking lot startled him and he came out of the exercise pattern."
Lima bumped up against the fence holding him in. "At that particular joint in the fence and at the speed he was going, it created an opening and he was out and he kept running," says Drake. The zebra galloped through the streets of downtown Atlanta, leaving shocked gasps and double takes in his wake.
"It was about five o'clock on Thursday afternoon when we got reports that a zebra was loose," Officer Eric Schwartz of the Atlanta Police Department tells Paw Nation. "Officers were out there holding up traffic to get the zebra re-routed and contain an area for the zebra."
It wasn't easy. According to the Atlanta-Journal Constitution, Lima dashed through the streets, eluding police officers and his zoo handlers. The striking black-and-white creature apparently even contemplated taking public transit when he ended up near a metro train station, but veered away, ran down a street, across railroad tracks, through a tunnel and down more local streets before sprinting onto an on-ramp and ending up on Interstate 75.
"It's a major highway and downtown connector," Erica Fatima of the Georgia Department of Transportation tells Paw Nation. Police blocked off all southbound lanes and Lima was finally caught.
"His handler stepped out and was able to calm him and walk him to the trailer," Drake tells us. Lima was hauled back to the circus at Philips Arena where the 12-year-old African mammal was examined by the circus veterinarian. "He's in good shape," Drake says of Lima. "He has a few minor abrasions on his hooves from running on concrete, but looks good, he's walking and eating."
Will Lima perform in tonight's show? "He won't be performing tonight," says Drake. "We're looking at it day to day, and we'll be evaluating whether he will rejoin the show."
Incredibly, this wasn't the first time a zebra has gotten loose in the Atlanta area. Two years ago, a young zebra that was later named "Evidence" was found on the side of the road and later rescued by the Noah's Ark animal sanctuary (home to the famous lion, tiger and bear trio). "Evidence was two or three months old and it looked like he must have fallen off a trailer and been struck by a vehicle," Diane Smith of Noah's Ark tells Paw Nation. "He had a crushed pelvis, shattered urethra, some teeth had been knocked out and he had a horrible gash across his back."
Evidence survived surgery that would have been insurmountable for a horse or deer, says Smith. "Zebras are survivors. Where they live [in the wild in Africa], they're prey. They're used to trauma." Today, Evidence is thriving at Noah's Ark and celebrated his second birthday on Valentine's Day. "He's really fun, but kinda feisty," says Smith. "The only one that can go near him is the director's husband who we call 'Pop.' Evidence is, after all, a wild animal.
"We don't know all the details about this second zebra [Lima] that got loose and we can't really judge what happened," Smith tells Paw Nation. "But we're just really, really glad that the zebra is okay."
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Unless you know a lot about animals you should just sit or stand where you are, do not try to catch any animal.
Animals can smell fear. That makes them run more toward or away from you. Toward you to hurt you or away from you for fear you will hurt them.
Animals are much fun and do our bidding if they know us.
Even when things bother or scare us we put off an odor.
I'm glad nothing happened.
Idon't blame the zebra for trying to get away, the way the circus treats their animals, if i was one i would run to
I agree with you. The way they treat the animals. All the animals should be released. They are terribly cruel to the animals. Also, they make them sit in the parking lot caged in, with no Air conditioning during the summer months. Saw that with my own eyes. They should do away with any type of CIRCUS. Animals have rights also.
There are only two places animals belong: in the wild, or being used to educate people ABOUT the wild (like in a zoo or rescue).
Where they do NOT belong is: an interstate, a circus, a backyard, or as pets.
With the exception, of course, of domestic (pets) animals such as cats/dogs/horses, etc. Just thought I'd add that so no one thought I was a crazy peta person. lmao
That zebra was probably trying to run for its life. Sitting in a pen outside isn't considered exercise!
Just a pity they caught up with the Zebra. So he was returned back to his misery in the Circus. Had good reason to run off. Down with the CIRCUS!!
the zebra was cited for speeding doing a 105 in a 70 mph zone
he got an extra fine with our new super speeder laws
You might run, too, if you looked behind you and saw that you were being chased by several black-and-whites! No, wait a minute...maybe he thought he was being followed by a dressing-room mirror!
The poor guy was probably running away from the horrible circus atmosphere.
I've read that they taste rather much like horses. Same family.
Check out PETA if you want to know what circuses do to their animals and why an animal might want to escape. I feel sorry that the poor thing was dragged back to that environment.
Don't advise people to contact peta people for anything. They are all crazy violent dangerous fanatics that should be locked up permanently.
They want people to think they care about animals but they only care about their own agenda and drawing attention to themselves. They need to be ignored and silenced.
PETA = People Eating Tasty Animals
People that denegrate PETA don't know anything about the good work they have done in protecting animals from ill treatment and cruelty. Sure, there have been extremist that claim affiliation with PETA but were not. Animals have been subjected to all matter of cruel experiments sponsored by the drug industry until PETA got the government to step in with protective measures. Although there is much work to do, organizations like PETA, National Humane Society and ASPCA are doing what they can to rescue animals from torture and painful deaths.
You and me both. Poor Zebra, back to the miserable life in that circus.
Wild animals shouldn't be in the circus, they belong in the wild. That's why the Big Apple circus is better, they only use domesticated animals.
Why are these a******* making money beating animals. If they were/are my family I will be spending years in jail because they will get the same beating.
I am definitely concerned about animal rights and safety but I don't think you should just assume that animals in this large circus are mistreated. they depend on having healthy and beautiful animals and employ a number of veterinarians to care for them. Lima the zebra was not "sitting" in a pen; he was outside exercising in a pen. At this time he has been brought to Athens, GA, and is being held for observation at the University of Georgia Veterinary School; one of the top Veterinary schools in the country. His only injury appears to be sore hooves from running on the highway and everyone is so thankful for that.