ATLANTA – Sandar, Zoo Atlanta’s 3-month-old Bornean orangutan, was euthanized today.
Sandar suffered multiple health complications since his March 30 birth, and officials did not believe the orangutan’s condition would improve.
“The Zoo Atlanta family is saddened by the passing of Sandar, particularly given the daily acts of determination and commitment that went into his treatment,” Raymond King, the zoo’s president and CEO, said in a statement. “The level of dedication and devotion that defined his care is unprecedented.”
Because of a series of recurrent illnesses, Sandar depended on oxygen. The zoo’s staff was planning to re-introduce Sandar to his family, had his condition improved.
“The Zoo staff and the many dedicated nurses, doctors and specialists from Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta went above and beyond the call in doing everything possible to combat Sandar’s many challenges and health complications. With his physical and developmental problems, he would never have survived this long in the wild,” Dr. Dwight Lawson, senior vice president of collections, education and conservation, said in a news release.