TOPEKA, Kan. (WIBW) – A pair of African Painted Dogs will soon be leaving the Topeka Zoo & Conservation Center.
Officials made the announcement in a news release on Friday morning.
According to the release, both male dogs — named Kellan and Takoda — will be moving next month to new facilities where they have important breeding recommendations, contributing to the future of their species.
This transition also aligns with the Topeka Zoo’s upcoming renovations, “ensuring the best possible environment for all its animals,” the news release said.
These moves, which Topeka Zoo officials said are “carefully planned with the dogs’ social dynamics in mind,” will take place by early March.
Kellan and Takoda are littermates born Sept. 11, 2016, at the Audubon Zoo in New Orleans, officials said. They arrived at the Topeka Zoo & Conservation Center in 2018 for the opening of the Camp Cowabunga exhibit.
The exact dates of the dogs’ move to another facility haven’t yet been determined. However, both Kellan and Takoda have already begun their pre-transfer requirements in an area behind-the-scenes at the Topeka Zoo and are no longer in their exhibits for public viewing.
African painted dogs are included on the International Union for Conservation of Nature’s Red List of Threatened Species.
To help ensure the species’ survival in the wild and in zoos, multiple accredited facilities within the Association of Zoos & Aquariums participate in the African Painted Dog Species Survival Plan as well as the Saving Animals from Extinction African Painted Dog program.
Both Kellan and Takoda have received breeding recommendations from the African Painted Dog Species Survival Plan with two separate females at two separate facilities.
“We are so proud to be a part of the Species Survival Plan with other AZA accredited Zoos, which will ensure we have these animal species in Zoos for years to come” said Topeka Zoo animal curator Shanna Simpson. “Kellan and Takoda are very valuable to the African Painted Dog population, and they are leaving Topeka to be paired with females for breeding. We are so excited for them to be introduced to females, hopefully have a litter of pups, and help raise those pups.”
While Topeka Zoo staff are excited to see how Kellan and Takoda contribute to the future populations of painted dogs, “they will certainly be missed,” the news release stated.
“Kellan and Takoda have been a wonderful part of our Topeka Zoo family for 7 years now,” Simpson said. “They have helped educate thousands of people about how incredible African Painted Dogs are. From watching them jump to eat the meat hanging on their zip line, to watching them sleep in the Camp Cowabunga window den- we know it’s not just the animal care staff who will miss them…our community will too.”
The Topeka Zoo, located at 635 S.W. Gage Boulevard in Gage Park, will provide updates via social media as the transportation dates are determined and will share where Kellan and Takoda make their travels to once the receiving organizations have a chance to announce their arrival at their facilities.
For more information, visit www.topekazoo.org.
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