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Welcome, Boomer - Have a steak! |
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Quebec’s fugitive lion cub has landed in the Townships. Boomer, the six-month-old lion that roamed western Quebec for two days until his capture last Thursday is now calling the Granby Zoo home.
Quebec’s ministry of natural resources took custody of the animal last week and decided he would be safe and most comfortable there, said the zoo’s spokeswoman Catherine Page.
“We’re happy to provide this service and take him in,” Page said.
Page said it is unclear how long the zoo will house Boomer, as that decision rests with the ministry. The Granby Zoo is currently home to four other adult lions — one male and three females.
On April 29, Boomer escaped from his owner, Stanley Dumont-Whiteduck, a resident of
an Algonquin First Nation reserve in Maniwaki, north of Ottawa. A search involving provincial police and a helicopter ensued Wednesday, although it was eventually a woman from the reserve who spotted the 70-kilogram cat early Thursday near the highway leading into town.
After the lion was captured, authorities kept him in a cell block of the local jail and fed him steaks.
Although Boomer caused a local media frenzy when he arrived at Granby Zoo last week, Page said that, as of 6 p.m. Friday, the cub was under quarantine, a normal procedure for animals new to the zoo. The cub, who appears to be in good health, will undergo a medical assessment to determine if he has parasites.
There are no current plans for Boomer to be put on display to the public, nor is the Granby Zoo even open until May 21.
Meanwhile, the Maniwaki reserve’s police are still trying to determine if Boomer’s owner had a permit to own an exotic pet.
Dumont-Whiteduck had the lion for two days before it broke from a chain on his property and escaped. Although he told police Boomer was not a danger to the public while on the loose, local schools and daycares were closed until the cub was found.
By Sarah Rogers
May 5, 2008 |
Montreal Canadiens
