A pygmy hippopotamus named Thabo, originally from Singapore, has been confirmed dead by the Taipei Zoo due to what the zoo said was malnutrition and infection.
In a statement yesterday, the Taipei Zoo, which was home to Thabo, confirmed that the 2-year-old hippo from Singapore’s Mandai Wildlife Group passed away sometime after 4 am, despite efforts to treat it over the past month.
Taipei Zoo spokesperson Tsao Hsien-shao (曹先紹) said caring for large animals is difficult, as they cannot be easily given injections or IV drops or be tube-fed.
Photo courtesy of Taipei Zoo via CNA
Tsao also mentioned Thabo’s shyness as a factor in its care. The zoo’s team tried hiding medication in its feed, but the hippo refused to take it, Tsao said.
Pygmy hippos, which live in forests, savannas, and wetlands, are listed as “endangered” by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN). This status indicates that the number of mature individuals has decreased to between 2,000 and 2,499 worldwide.
According to the zoo’s statement, Thabo arrived at the Taipei Zoo in mid-November 2024 and was first seen by the public in January 2025.
On Feb. 11, a zookeeper noticed a wound on Thabo’s right foot and began treating it with oral medication and daily cleaning. The hippo refused the medication, however, and kept avoiding the zookeepers, making treatment difficult.
As Thabo developed more lumps on its body, the condition worsened due to the cold air mass and drastic temperature fluctuations between day and night, as Thabo was accustomed to the stable, warm weather of Singapore.
On Sunday, the care team set up an emergency unit to provide round-the-clock care, but Thabo’s white blood cell count, muscle index, and other indicators related to liver and kidney function continued to rise before the animal’s death.
An autopsy performed by a veterinary team from National Taiwan University later confirmed that Thabo suffered from malnutrition and infection, the zoo said.
Tsao said the zoo will continue to investigate the causes of Thabo’s death to determine whether the zoo’s environment posed any risk to other animals, while also reflecting on how care procedures might be improved.
DEFENSE: The National Security Bureau promised to expand communication and intelligence cooperation with global partners and enhance its strategic analytical skills China has not only increased military exercises and “gray zone” tactics against Taiwan this year, but also continues to recruit military personnel for espionage, the National Security Bureau (NSB) said yesterday in a report to the Legislative Yuan. The bureau submitted the report ahead of NSB Director-General Tsai Ming-yen’s (蔡明彥) appearance before the Foreign and National Defense Committee today. Last year, the Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) conducted “Joint Sword-2024A and B” military exercises targeting Taiwan and carried out 40 combat readiness patrols, the bureau said. In addition, Chinese military aircraft entered Taiwan’s airspace 3,070 times last year, up about
The Overseas Community Affairs Council (OCAC) yesterday announced a fundraising campaign to support survivors of the magnitude 7.7 earthquake that struck Myanmar on March 28, with two prayer events scheduled in Taipei and Taichung later this week. “While initial rescue operations have concluded [in Myanmar], many survivors are now facing increasingly difficult living conditions,” OCAC Minister Hsu Chia-ching (徐佳青) told a news conference in Taipei. The fundraising campaign, which runs through May 31, is focused on supporting the reconstruction of damaged overseas compatriot schools, assisting students from Myanmar in Taiwan, and providing essential items, such as drinking water, food and medical supplies,
STRICTER ENFORCEMENT: Taipei authorities warned against drunk cycling after a sharp rise in riding under the influence, urging greater public awareness of its illegality Taipei authorities have issued a public warning urging people not to ride bicycles after consuming alcohol, following a sharp rise in riding under the influence (DUI) cases involving bicycles. Five hundred and seven people were charged with DUI last year while riding YouBikes, personal bicycles, or other self-propelled two-wheelers — a fourfold increase from the previous year, data released by the Taipei Police Department’s Traffic Division showed. Of these, 33 cases were considered severe enough to be prosecuted under “offenses against public safety,” the data showed. Under the Road Traffic Management and Penalty Act (道路交通管理處罰條例), bicycles — including YouBikes and other
New Party Deputy Secretary-General You Chih-pin (游智彬) this morning went to the National Immigration Agency (NIA) to “turn himself in” after being notified that he had failed to provide proof of having renounced his Chinese household registration. He was one of more than 10,000 naturalized Taiwanese citizens from China who were informed by the NIA that their Taiwanese citizenship might be revoked if they fail to provide the proof in three months, people familiar with the matter said. You said he has proof that he had renounced his Chinese household registration and demanded the NIA provide proof that he still had Chinese
RSS