The Larely Beagle – The Community Newspaper of Larely, California

Due to shrinking budgets and the rising costs of food, the Larely Zoo was forced to euthanize its entire population of endangered sea otters today.

The otters, which first came to the zoo twelve years ago, were typically one of the most popular attractions at the zoo.  It wasn’t uncommon for hundreds of visitors to stand around the viewing area and take pictures as Fluffy [one of the mother otters], would float in the water with Daisy [her pup] on her chest.  Unfortunately, the cost of the otters’ food: invertebrates like sea urchins, clams, mussels, and abalone, have more than tripled over the past year and the zoo was no longer able to afford those costs.

While the decision hasn’t sat well with local wildlife advocates, Stanley Nobbs, the zoo’s executive director defended the zoo’s decision saying, “We explored every possibility and crunched every number, but in the end, it just made the most sense to put them down.  Believe me, this wasn’t an easy decision, and it was with a heavy heart that we did this.”

Nobbs also said that the otters deaths would not be in vain, as the zoo stands to make a substantial sum of money selling off their pelts, which can go for thousands of dollars a piece on the black market.  “It’s true that every black cloud has a silver lining and that silver lining is their pelts.  Sea otters have the densest fur of any animal on the planet and people are willing to pay a pretty penny for their pelts.  We plan on taking those pretty pennies and using them to hire a full time masseuse that can tend to the needs of the board of directors.”

The aquatic habitat that once housed the otters is also being remodeled into a hot tub and sauna for the zoo’s executive board.  When finished, it will have a men’s and women’s locker room and will be staffed by a full time lifeguard.

When asked if the zoo had pursued the possibility of a private donor that could shoulder the financial responsibility of feeding the otters, Nobbs acknowledged that the idea had come up, but the zoo felt that it would be too much work to pull together.

The idea of creating more otter themed souvenirs for the zoo’s gift shop also came up, but it proved to be an impossibility as the contractors that are converting the habitat area had already been paid a non-refundable deposit for their work.