Updated
Updated · The New York Times · Jun 26
Missing Texas Giraffe Gracie Found Alive 4 Miles Away After 2 Weeks
Updated
Updated · The New York Times · Jun 26

Missing Texas Giraffe Gracie Found Alive 4 Miles Away After 2 Weeks

3 articles · Updated · The New York Times · Jun 26

Summary

  • Gracie was spotted alive Friday morning about 4 miles from Cedar Hollow Ranch, ending a two-week search in Texas Hill Country.
  • A helicopter search found her after ranch manager Vick Jones got permission to check new properties; the pilot identified her roughly 45 minutes into the flight.
  • Jones said the 3.5- to 4-year-old reticulated giraffe looked in good shape in an uninhabited area with no public access, echoing the sheriff's description of her as "fat and happy."
  • A veterinarian is now assembling a recovery team to immobilize Gracie and move her in a special trailer back to the ranch, where she had arrived only last month.

Insights

After a giraffe's viral escape, should Texas re-evaluate its laws treating exotic animals simply as commercial livestock?
With a deadly screwworm plague in Texas, could one giraffe's return threaten hundreds of other exotic animals?