NORTH WHITEHALL TWP. — Lehigh Valley Zoo is mourning the death of one of its oldest residents.
Whiskers, a 31-year-old Palomino horse, "passed away earlier this week," the zoo announced on Facebook Tuesday.
The post described Whiskers as "a shy, but curious horse" that "rarely turned down an apple treat or some sweet feed grain."
"She was the last remaining horse from the herd that once roamed the Trexler Nature Preserve."Lehigh Valley Zoo Facebook post
"She was the last remaining horse from the herd that once roamed the Trexler Nature Preserve," the post said.
Those horses were in the zoo's care since 2004, the post said, to better care for them as they aged.
Sara Koplish, general curator at Lehigh Valley Zoo, said she worked as a keeper in 2000 and met Whiskers when she was 14 or 15 years old.
"I was shocked when I came back to this position and I was like, 'She's still around?'" Koplish said. "Up until the end, she was living her best life."
The zoo's webpage on Palomino horses says their average lifespan is 20-25 years, but they can live to 30-35 years-old.
Sparkles, a 24-year-old Palomino horse, died in 2020, leaving Whiskers as the last horse in the herd.
Public outpouring
Similar to Whiskers, Sparkles "passed peacefully" — Koplish said Whiskers had no "ongoing" health issues that contributed to her passing.
"For [Whiskers], it would be like someone in their 90s" compared to human lives, Koplish said. "She was definitely geriatric.
"She will be fondly remembered by staff and guests, who have enjoyed visiting her for over three decades."Lehigh Valley Zoo Facebook post
"But thankfully, up until the very end there, she wasn't really having any medical concerns. So she had a really nice long life here."
Among an outpouring of messages reading "sorry for your loss," and "rest in peace," visitors took to the comments sharing photos and stories of themselves and loved ones enjoying their time with Whiskers at the zoo.
"She will be fondly remembered by staff and guests, who have enjoyed visiting her for over three decades," the Zoo's post said.
Both Koplish and Matt Provence, the zoo's chief operating officer, remembered Whiskers for her popularity with visitors.
"What I can tell you from a guest services perspective is that one thing I learned in the 6-plus years I've been here is how incredibly popular that Palomino horse is," Provence said.
"For a moment, you take for granted what an awesome animal she was. It never failed to amaze me how many people were like, 'We gotta see the horse,' 'We gotta see the Palomino horse.'
"It was always so shocking when you have giraffes and pandas that... she had that much fanfare."
'Last member of the herd'
Koplish attributed it to the horse's history in the Lehigh Valley, having been born in the area back in the early 1990s. As time went on, the zoo gave Whiskers a back pasture in which to find peace.
"She was a character," Koplish said with a laugh. "She definitely preferred her solitude.
"The horses in general have been part of history of the Trexler Nature Preserve and the zoo. So it's kind of the end of an era, losing her, the last member of the herd.Sara Koplish, general curator at Lehigh Valley Zoo
"I think she definitely enjoyed the guests coming here and visiting her and she definitely made her own time to visit them, too."
She said that Whiskers living three decades in the Lehigh Valley — "a great big pasture" nonetheless — speaks to the zoo's care for their animals.
But her presence will be deeply missed by zookeepers and the public, she said.
"The horses in general have been part of history of the Trexler Nature Preserve and the zoo," Koplish said. "So it's kind of the end of an era, losing her, the last member of the herd."
