HERSHEY, Pa. — Officials with ZooAmerica shared an update on Thursday regarding the health of Murphy, a cinnamon black bear.
According to the zoo, Murphy began having difficulty utilizing his back left leg two weeks ago. ZooAmerica's primary vet team, the Animal Hospital of Dauphin County, examined and set him up with a medication regimen.
Unfortunately, Murphy's condition declined after a few days of improvement. The zoo began to look into other options, such as a change in medication, a low-level laser treatment and an x-ray under the on-site supervision of the primary veterinary team and numerous consultants, as shared in a statement posted to Facebook.
The veterinary team soon discovered from a recent x-ray that Murphy has a spinal issue between two of his vertebrae. The location of the problem is consistent with his affected back left leg.
With his new diagnosis, two additional medications were prescribed; if they are ineffective, the zoo will consider other options, including surgery.
During this time, ZooAmerica has confirmed that Murphy will remain indoors and behind the scenes at the Black Bear habitat in order to receive the highest level of care and comfort during treatment.
The zoo thanks patrons for their support during the challenging time for Murphy and more updates will be shared as they become available.
