Last summer at the Dallas Zoo, Hildy the giraffe crossed over to the next plane. She was believed to be the oldest giraffe in the world. At 33, she had six children and 39 grandchildren. At the time of her death, our hearts went out to the zoo staff and especially to Kibo, her daughter and constant companion. But we also had a question: how did the bereaved handle Hildy’s 14-foot-tall, 1,500-pound, lifeless body? We’re a little slow, so it took awhile. Finally, though, we have the answer. See if you can guess.
A. Cremation
B. Burial
C. Fed to the lions
D. Thrown in the garbage
ANSWER: A. The Dallas Zoo does have an on-site crematorium. But Hildy was too big to fit in the furnace, bless her heart. B. Cedar Creek runs through the zoo property. Burial would have created runoff issues frowned upon by the Environmental Protection Agency. C. The lions eat a special diet that does not include giraffe meat. And the zoo says it would never feed one animal in its collection to another. D. Bingo. Hildy’s corpse was taken to the city’s McCommas Landfill in South Dallas, where zoo officials assure us it was disposed of in a respectful manner, in an area for organic material.
