Owner Of Missing Zebras Faces Animal Cruelty Charges, Another In PG County Herd Dies

PRINCE GEORGE'S COUNTY, MD — Two zebras remain on the lam in Prince George's County and their owner now faces three counts of animal cruelty. A third zebra originally on the loose was caught in a snare and died from its injuries mere feet from an enclosure where the herd of 36 zebras is kept.

Snare traps are illegal in Prince George's County and the animal's death is being investigated. Initially, it was reported that five zebras had escaped, but authorities later said only three originally escaped from the farm. All charges are related to the zebras at large.

Prosecutors say Jerry Lee Holly, 76, the owner of the exotic animal farm where the zebras lived, did not provide proper care and sustenance to his zebras, according to charging documents.

An investigator with the Maryland Department of Natural Resources said in charging documents that “the animal should have been seen or heard while it was dying from being caught in the snare if the caretaker had attended to the zebras in the fenced enclosure."

Prosecutors say the investigator believes the trapped zebra likely died from dehydration after trying to free itself from the trap. By the time the animal was discovered by Maryland Natural Resources police, the zebra’s body was completely decomposed, WJZ reported, so a cause of death could not be determined.

Another zebra was found dead inside the enclosure Tuesday and “had been deceased long enough that it had entered the rigor-mortis stage,” prosecutors said. That death also is being investigated after the department of environment was notified by a news helicopter's occupants who had observed what was believed to be a deceased zebra in an enclosure. Animal control officers, who were scheduled to visit the property later that day, immediately inspected the property and located the dead zebra.

In the meantime, officials have created a plan in the hopes of luring the two remaining furry fugitives back home to safety.

According to Prince George’s County Department of Environment’s Animal Services Division, the zebras' owner and caretaker would like to trap the wayward pair in an enclosure inside a corral and use food and other zebras to draw them back to their herd.

Veterinarians from the U.S. Department of Agriculture and county department of the environment staff believe this option proposes the least risk to the animals.

"Our priority is to make sure the zebras are captured and returned to the herd," DoE Director Andrea L. Crooms said. "Once this is accomplished, the county will conduct a further investigation, and any actions including any appropriate charges against the owner will be evaluated."

The department of environment said is would not impound the remaining animals kept on the property. But the department is exploring all options and checking on potential partnerships with animal sanctuaries should the animals need to be removed. Since the three zebras escaped in August, the department of environment has inspected the property every two to three business days and will continue to monitor the health and safety of the remaining animals in the herd and any threat they pose to the community's safety.

The public is asked to continue reporting any sightings of the zebras to PGC311 or by contacting the county animal services division at 301-780-7200.

"Never approach them, and don't try to pet them," Rodney Taylor, chief of the Prince George's animal services division, told the Washington Post. "They're not going to chase you down. But they are zebras, so they're not handled by people a lot, so to defend themselves they could bite."

Related: 5 Zebras On Loose In Prince George's County: Officials

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