By: News Tribune staff, Duluth News Tribune
The Lake Superior Zoo in Duluth lost one of its three brother wolves this week.
Cohen was euthanized after an emergency surgery Tuesday when it was discovered the animal had a massive abdominal infection.
Zoo staff members noticed that Cohen became increasingly lethargic over several days. The wolf was brought to the zoo’s care center for evaluation where it was decided that an emergency exploratory surgery would be performed.
Zoo veterinarian Louise Beyea said Cohen had a “serious and deadly infection in his abdominal cavity that was the result of a ruptured abscess.”
The abscess also was adhered to the main blood supply to the entire digestive tract. Had it been removed, Beyea said, the wolf would have lost blood supply to 75 percent of its small intestine and 30 percent of the large intestine.
“This was one of the worst abdominal cases I’ve operated on in 25 years,” Beyea said. “As you know, the problem with wildlife is that they don’t show symptoms of illness until they are extremely ill. Even in pet dogs that show signs of illness right away, these are very challenging cases.”
Cohen was one of three gray wolves born in 2003 and brought on loan to the zoo in December 2010. The other two, Capone and Dillinger, are doing fine. The three —named after gangster characters, according to the zoo’s blog —were raised at the Wildlife Science Center in Columbus, north of St. Paul. Cohen’s brothers will live out their lives at the zoo.
Maicie Sykes, the zoo’s lead keeper, said the wolf was a favorite.
“Cohen was a wonderful animal when it came to interacting with public,” she said. “He loved to chase children up and down the fence line.
His absence is very noticeable.”
When the wolves arrived, it was believed to be the first time the species had been seen at the zoo. Two years later, the zoo changed its logo to include a howling wolf.