'Check your gardens!': Third racoon recovered following mass animal escape from Isle of Wight zoo
4 November 2024, 05:52 | Updated: 4 November 2024, 05:53
A third racoon has been recovered after a group of the animals made a bid for freedom after escaping a zoo on the Isle of Wight.
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The animal was one of four female racoons who got free from their compound at Amazon World Zoo Park in Sandown on Friday morning.
One racoon now remains at large.
The zoo announced its recapture with a "Racoon Update" on social media early on Monday, saying "Number 3 has been caught", accompanied with pictures of the animal in a cage.
It gave no details of where the racoon was caught.
The first racoon was recovered on Friday night in Newchurch, close to the zoo's grounds, while the second was discovered near to the parrot enclosures on Saturday nights.
After checks, the first two recovered animals were being kept in an enclosure not on show to the public, along with another racoon who did not escape.
The zoo issued a "huge thank you to all the staff" for their "huge team effort" in trying to recover the animals.
Since racoons are nocturnal, the majority of the rescue efforts have been taking place at night with staff using tracker dogs and drones to try and locate the escaped animals.
Read more: Inquiry under way at Belfast zoo after worker ‘locked in enclosure with lions’
Rachel Patrick, a head keeper at the zoo, said on Friday that members of the public should remain vigilant "especially from 4.30pm and through the night".
She added: "Check your gardens, trees, hedgerows, and sheds just as if you were looking for a lost cat or dog.
"Please do not approach the animals. They are not aggressive normally but will be scared."
The zoo has asked anyone who spots the one missing racoon to take a picture if safe to do so, with any reports sent to the racoon hotline by phone, message or WhatsApp on 07956 194981.
