Nashville Zoo's Andean bear Holt dies after repeated seizures

Jason Gonzales | The Tennessean

Show Caption Hide Caption Expedition Peru: Trek of the Andean Bear The Nashville Zoo at Grassmere is now home to a new exhibit, Expedition Peru: Trek of the Andean Bear, which features three bears. It also features pudú, guinea pigs and freshwater rays.

Nashville Zoo's Andean bear Holt died on Wednesday morning after staff was forced to euthanize the bear suffering from a series of seizures, according to a zoo social media post. He was 4.

He shared the enclosure with two other bears, one of which was his brother Muniri.

The zoo had planned a birthday celebration for Holt and Muniri on Wednesday, with both turning four on Nov. 11, according to a zoo spokesman. The event was canceled.

“We are devastated at the sudden loss of Holt,” said Nashville Zoo President and CEO Rick Schwartz in a Facebook post. “He was a very charismatic animal and a great ambassador for his species and the zoo. His absence will have a profound and lasting effect on all of us here at the zoo.”

According to the Facebook post, Nashville Zoo’s veterinary staff were called to the off-exhibit Andean bear holding at about 3 p.m. on Tuesday after a keeper witnessed Holt having a series of full-body seizures.

The veterinary team arrived within minutes, the post says, to administer anti-seizure medication. It didn't have an effect, it says.

For the next 12 hours, the veterinary team made continual attempts to stop the seizures, the post says.

At 3 a.m. on Wednesday, the post says Nashville Zoo’s animal care officials "made the difficult decision to humanely euthanize the bear."

“Holt had no history of seizures,” said Heather Robertson, Nashville Zoo director of Veterinary Services. “He was considered to be a perfectly healthy bear.”

Our Andean bear brothers, Holt & Muniri, are turning 4! 🐻🐻 Nashville Zoo carnivore keepers will be celebrating by decorating their exhibit with lots of fun enrichment Nov. 14.



Stop by early to see the fun theme and all their antics!



Photo Credit: Jeanalice Brickman pic.twitter.com/5YubppSHCV — Nashville Zoo (@NashvilleZoo) November 12, 2018

The zoo’s veterinary team will perform a necropsy and histopathology to try and determine the cause of the seizures, the Facebook post says.

Average life expectancy of Andean bears in captivity is about 25 years, according to a zoo spokesman.

Holt came to Nashville Zoo in May 2016 from Smithsonian’s National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute.

The exhibit for Holt and the other two bears opened in March. It has since become a favorite of zoo visitors due to the playful nature of the bears.

Zoo officials asked that anyone wishing to honor Holt is encouraged to make a contribution to Andean bear conservation through the Wildlife Conservation Network at https://wildnet.org/wildlife-programs/spectacled-bear/.

Reach Jason Gonzales at jagonzales@tennessean.com and on Twitter@ByJasonGonzales.