San Diego
San Diego Zoo officials found cancer throughout the body of Matilda, the 11-year-old koala who died Tuesday and was the mother of a rare albino baby koala. A necropsy Wednesday showed that cancer had invaded several organs of the elderly koala, a veterinarian said, and could have caused the anemia detected in Matilda on Tuesday. Officials have not yet determined the precise nature of the cancer.
The father of the 10-month-old albino also died Tuesday during a procedure to check his blood for a possible transfusion to Matilda. Pooya suffered respiratory arrest while anesthetized and died. The necropsy on the 5-year-old Pooya showed no physical abnormalities. Veterinarians said that Pooya’s death during the procedure was an unusual but ever-present risk during anesthesia.
The 10-month-old albino, named Goolara, was doing well Wednesday and is expected to suffer no ill effects from the death of her mother.
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