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(Continued from home page) "Euthanized due to being male," says the keepers' report, terse and angry.

The keepers were so upset they left as the vets moved into the reindeer enclosure and refused to take part.

"This is wrong," the keepers told the vets, who were none too happy either.

Three female babies have been spared.

TINSEL AND RHONDA

Tinsel and Rhonda delivered theirs the same day as CUPE.

Lucky for them, they had girls, now prancing about the paddock in the full flush of spring.

Girl European reindeer are less hassle. Easier to sell or trade to other zoos. I'm told they're even better at hauling a sleigh.

Two years ago, zoo execs gave approval in principle to the euthanizing of male reindeer.

This spring is the first time it's been executed, so to speak.

Remarkable, eh? I wonder if anyone considered how this looks.

Call it herd management, or whatever.

They're snuffing Rudolph.

They never let poor Rudolph

join in any reindeer games

Never before has the zoo imposed a euthanasia order on a breed of large animal.

The only precedent I can find, about five years back, is the mara, a sort of jumping guinea pig from South America.

The zoo euthanized male maras to cap the population. Later, it sold off the whole lot.

Many staff wonder: Why kill the boy reindeer? Why not just neuter them?

True, this can cause atrophied antlers. Big deal. The kiddies who visit will still ooh and ahhh and hum Jingle Bells.

Or, staff wonder, if you're going to exterminate every male, why breed the eight females in the first place?

Seems rather cruel. Reindeer roulette. Female, you live. Male, you die.

Says one staffer: "This bothers me more than anything I've ever experienced here.

"Many of us feel these are not our animals and not management's animals, but belong to the city, to the people of Toronto.

"And they should know what's happening."

Says another: "I'm sick to my stomach. This is the beginning of a road we don't want to go down."

Funny, I thought zoos love baby animals.

There's always a fuss when a cute little snow leopard or polar bear comes into the world, out in the wilds of northeast Scarborough.

Two days before Hayzel's son was put to death with sodium pentobarbital, a press release announced the arrival of a baby gaur.

Congratulations to Flower and Hercules. Gaurs are huge, wild Asian cattle.

The baby? A bouncing boy. Doing fine.

Need I add, a week from now is Mother's Day at the zoo. Given what's transpired, I hope they have the sense not to showcase the reindeer moms. Two of them aren't celebrating.

Maria Franke, curator of mammals, tells me the decision to euthanize male reindeer calves was made by something called the Animal Care, Research and Acquisition Committee.

"It was a gruelling process," she assures me. "We do not take this lightly. There is science behind it."

It's especially hard to sell reindeer because of disease fears. There's no room.

Too expensive to release in the wild. If they keep the males they'll be lonely. They yearn for their own harem. We can't even sell the two bucks we have now. No one likes this. It's a necessary evil. Blah, blah, blah.

YOU'RE KILLING BABY REINDEER.

So why breed the herd, knowing half the babies are doomed?

"If we did not, we would end up with no reindeer," says Franke.

"We aren't just an entertainment facility. We're a conservation facility and our goal is to manage genetically viable populations of animals.

"I know some keepers are upset. I know it's a sensitive subject."

No kidding. Just wait'll word gets back to the North Pole.

And it's not over.

One more calf is due any day now.

We're all hoping for a girl.

SHOULD THE ZOO BE ABLE TO JUST KILL ANY ANIMAL IT WANTS FOR ANY REASON IT WANTS?? Is this acceptable behavior at a Zoo that is supposed to be caring for, and providing these animals with loving, natural environments?? Click here and let your mayor and city councillor know what you think about this deplorable behavior!! You may also voice your opinion by speaking up on our Metro Zoo reindeer killing blog.

UPDATES-

Click Here to read Dr. Graham Crawshaw - Senior Veterinarian at the Toronto Zoo's response.

Click Here to read Ben Spencer of the Toronto Sun's latest commentary article on the issue - "Will there be blood?".

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