Muskox gets out of enclosure at Winnipeg zoo, but can't make great escape

Zookeepers say he is just a regular muskox, but a big beast from the Assiniboine Park Zoo in Winnipeg attempted to go on a great adventure last week.

The male muskox escaped his enclosure on May 26 but never made it out of a second containment area, the zoo said.

"Muskox in general can be a bit cantankerous, but he's your typical muskox," said Gary Lunsford, the senior director of animal care and conservation at the zoo.

"Pretty mundane, doesn't stand out, never too busy to say, 'Hello.'"

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Lunsford said no one was at risk and safety protocols were implemented right after it was noticed the shaggy beast had made his great escape.

"The responders were on site in minutes and sedated the animal shortly after," he said. 

Once the animal fell asleep, staff lifted him up onto the back of a truck and he was relocated to a secure area. Muskoxen, which are a member of the goat-sheep family, can weigh 180 to more than 270 kilograms, Lunsford said.

The sleepy muskox ended up breaking a horn while waking up and is getting veterinary treatment, he said.

While the exact details of the escape aren't yet known, Lunsford said they are examining a gate and any circumstances that may have been related to the getaway.

Muskoxen are Arctic mammals that roam the tundra in search of roots, mosses and lichen. There are five in the zoo's Journey to Churchill exhibit.