2-year-old giraffe dies after surgery

A 2-year-old giraffe died over the weekend at the Ramat Gan safari as a result of complications after surgery.

Jengo the giraffe was operated on by leading veterinary surgeons on Thursday for a genital defect he was born with, the safari said.

The giraffe woke up after surgery and initially appeared to be recovering, but 24 hours later, he fell sick and died.

The safari welcomed Jengo from Frankfurt only six months ago.

“Jengo’s death has caused us great pain,” the safari said in a statement. “The search for the right giraffe took months, and we were very happy when the giraffe from the Frankfurt zoo was found suitable genetically in order to one day become the dominant male among the reticulated giraffes.”

Upon his arrival from Germany, he was “greeted with great affection by both the trainers and the giraffes,” the safari said.

In 2012, a giraffe at the Kiryat Motzkin zoo near Haifa died after eating visitors’ food.