Giza Zoo: Zizi, the white rhino, dies at 54 years of age

CAIRO – 25 March 2019: Giza Zoological Garden announced Sunday a white rhinoceros died at 54 years of age at Giza Zoo after it surpassed the usual life span of white rhinos, according to a statement published on the garden’s Facebook page.

Zizi, the rhino, arrived at Giza Zoo on October 22, 1983. White rhinos usually live to about 35 - 50 years of age.

The statement said that vets and workers at the zoo exerted all efforts and prepared food that fits its old age but could not save its life. Zizi was announced dead on Wednesday, March 20, 2019.

In December, Egypt’s Giza Zoo launched an Immunization campaign for animals through periodic vaccination to protect animals from common diseases such as Ovine rinderpest, which is contagious and common among goats and sheep.

Giza Zoo is Egypt's most famous and historic zoo; it is also considered to be the biggest animal park in the Middle East. The zoo was opened for the public in 1891 during the rule of Khedive Tawfiq. Many kinds of rare and endangered animals and birds live in the park and have successfully bred there.