Polar Bear Died Due To A Broken Heart, Days After She Was Separated From Her Best Friend

Imagine, your best friend is the only person that you have known all your life. And now imagine, she/he is taken away. It would be impossible to live, right? And this is exactly what happened to a polar bear in the U.S.A.

Szenja, a 21-year-old polar bear died unexpectedly at SeaWorld in San Diego Zoo. PETA says, that she “died of a broken heart”. A week before she died, Szenja refused to eat and showed low energy.

Image Source

 

Szenja has been living in the zoo since she was 2 years old. And it has been 20 years since she has been living with her best friend, Snowflake. Snowflake was shipped to another zoo, 3 months ago for a breeding program. PETA says,

“She(Szenja) did what anyone would do when they lose all hope, she gave up.”

 

Remembering Szenja, a spokesperson at the SeaWorld, Al Graver said,

Image Source

“We’re proud to have been a part of (Szenja’s) life and to know that she inspired people from around the world to want to protect polar bears in the wild.”

 

PETA says that the death of Szenja should make the SeaWorld stop its practise of sending animals to far away places for breeding. While SeaWorld says

“polar bear breeding effort keeps SeaWorld and the Pittsburgh Zoo at the forefront of wildlife conservation and education, and further demonstrates our commitment to conserve species in peril.”

So, the real cause of the death would be known after they perform a necropsy which could take weeks. The unexpected death is said to be caused due to broken heart because polar bear in captivity live up to 40 years.

News Source: National Post, The San Diego Union-Tribune

📣 Storypick is now on Telegram! Click here to join our channel (@storypick) and never miss another great story.