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"A two-year-old giraffe was put down by officials at the Copenhagen Zoo in Denmark on Sunday. The decision was made to prevent inbreeding within the giraffe population at the zoo. \nThe giraffe in question, Marius, was otherwise healthy and loved. The decision was made despite a petition with more than 27,000 signatures and numerous attempts by other zoos to take in Marius, such as the Yorkshire Wildlife Park in the UK. But the Copenhagen Zoo refused to send away the giraffe. \nSee also: A Tech Park in Spain for Birds, Frogs and Turtles\nThe zoo's choice to euthanize Marius was based on the bylaws of the European Breeding Programme for Giraffes, which \"prohibit inbreeding in an effort to maintain the health of the stock,\" according to Time.\nStine Jensen, a member of Denmark\u2019s Organization Against the Suffering of Animals, did not agree with the decision. \u201CIt just shows that the zoo is, in fact, not the ethical institution that it wants to portray itself as being, because here you have a waste product \u2014 that being Marius,\u201D he told the BBC. \"Here we have a zoo which thinks that putting this giraffe down instead of thinking of alternatives is the best option.\u201D\nWhile other options, such as contraceptives, were considered, they were ultimately decided against because they would have ruined Marius' quality of life. Instead, he was killed with a bolt gun.\nAfter the giraffe was put down, zoo workers dissected the giraffe in front of a crowd of adults and children. While some of its body will be used for research, other parts fed lions at the zoo. \nHave something to add to this story? Share it in the comments.\n"^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
<http://mashable.com/2014/02/09/copenhangen-zoo-giraffe/>