CHICAGO (WBBM NEWSRADIO) -- The Brookfield Zoo is mourning the loss of a river otter pup.
The North American river otter pup was born at the zoo on Feb. 26. Soon after his birth, the pup's mom, Charlotte, was not accepting him as her own, resulting in the pup not being provided proper nourishment.
Brookfield Zoo's original plan was to relocate the pup to another accredited institution that has otters of similar age, to give the river otter the "best opportunity for companionship and socialization" due to the unlikelihood of his mother accepting him back into her care.
"This was an enormously hard decision to make, but to prevent the otter from any further suffering, we determined this was the only viable course of action," said Bill Zeigler, senior vice president of animal programs for the Chicago Zoological Society, which manages Brookfield Zoo.
The zoo's media spokesperson said, "We are all devastated, [it's] especially hard on the veterinary animal care staff who had been caring for him."