Capybara remains at large in Shropshire
Keepers at Hoo Zoo and Dinosaur World say they don't want to stress out one-year-old Cinnamon
Last updated 19th Sep 2024
Efforts to recapture a capybara which escaped from a Shropshire zoo have been paused until Friday so the animal does not become stressed.
One-year-old Cinnamon escaped from Hoo Zoo and Dinosaur World in Telford on Saturday.
She was found living in a field next to the zoo by a search team on Tuesday night, but has not yet been recaptured.
In a Facebook update, the zoo said Cinnamon is "comfortable, content, not short on food and not at risk to predators", so efforts to return her to her enclosure are being paused to keep her calm and healthy.
Keepers were working through the night on Wednesday to try to catch her, but said the area where she is currently living is "extremely dense" with "almost impenetrable" undergrowth, that Cinnamon can move through easily but they cannot.
She was spotted by a thermal drone within five metres of the place she was seen on Tuesday night, and keepers found fresh tracks and capybara poo which suggests she is "extremely comfortable and happy in that area".
The post said: "Due to this we've taken the decision to pause recapture efforts for the time being and will resume on Friday night.
"We have been in lengthy discussions with wildlife capture professionals and all of us are concerned that continued disturbance of where Cinnamon is living could cause her to relocate to an area that could be dangerous.
"We are also bordered by the MoD and there are concerns that if she moves into that area we may not be able to retrieve her.
"At present she is comfortable, content, not short on food and not at risk to predators so it's better that we take our time and recapture Cinnamon with the least amount of stress possible.
"We have placed multiple live traps in that area and will be checking these multiple times a day, but won't be conducting any further mass searches until Friday night unless the situation changes."
The zoo said they were "touched and overwhelmed" that Cinnamon's plight had garnered support from all over the world.
They added: "We know that everyone wants a quick resolution to this but we are sure you can all agree that it's more important that we recapture Cinnamon with as little stress as possible and ensure she stays happy and healthy."