Jail for zookeeper who killed ostrich

AN EMPLOYEE at a zoo in the Gironde department killed an ostrich with a shovel - then tried to pin the blame on an old pony, a court has heard.

The High Court in Bordeaux was told that the animal was found dead in March last year, in an enclosure it shared with the pony at Zoo Bassin d’Arcachon in La Teste-de-Buch, regional newspaper SudOuest reported.

There was evidence of violent blows to the ostrich’s head and beak, the paper said.

The staff member, who had worked at the zoo for 15 years, claimed that the pony, which the paper reported is 38-year-old, must have kicked the ostrich.

But the court was told that the age and height of the horse made those claims unlikely, while a witness said that the accused had been seen hitting the animal with a shovel.

Colleagues also reported that the accused was frequently cruel to animals and the court also heard that another employee had filed a harassment charge against the accused.

The employee was found guilty of harassment and acts of abuse or cruelty to an animal. He was sentenced to six months in prison, with four suspended, and ordered to pay fines totalling €7,000 for the death of the animal and in damages to the abused staff member.

Photo: Dan Taylor