Oldest marmot in captivity passes away at Calgary Zoo

CALGARY – Staff at the Calgary Zoo are mourning the loss of a 14-year-old Vancouver Island marmot.

According to the zoo, Harriet was the oldest Vancouver Island marmot in captivity in Canada.

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She passed on Dec. 24 away due to liver cancer which had spread to her lungs while in hibernation.

A statement on the zoo’s website said the animal “left a special legacy and will be missed by animal care staff that cared for her.”

“The keepers and animal care staff and veterinarians were quite upset,” Calgary Zoo spokesperson Trish Exton-Parder said. “She’s an important animal in the program. We hold two-thirds of the captive population in the breeding program that’s been going on very successfully since 1998, so when we lose one of the members of that, it’s a sad day.”

With a file from David Boushy