CNN - Rhino killed after escaping Louisiana zoo

BROUSSARD, Louisiana (CNN) -- A rare white rhinoceros was killed Thursday after it escaped from a private zoo and charged one of the men trying to capture it.

The rampaging 5,000-pound female was shot by the zoo veterinarian as it charged within 15 feet of him, said Casey Lamb, general curator of a nearby zoo who was called in to try to tranquilize the animal.

Lamb said he tried to shoot the rhino with a tranquilizer gun, but was unable to do so because the animal was running through an area covered with thick brush. The rhino was stopped with a bullet between the eyes.

The animal broke through a sturdy welded pipe fence at the Zoo of Arcadiana Thursday after fighting with a male rhino, curator Ron Cline said. Only about 6,000 white rhinos exist worldwide. The dead animal's age was estimated at 10 years, and it was believed to be pregnant.

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