03/10/2026
Today, we made the difficult decision to say goodbye to a beloved member of The Living Desert family. Memo the jaguar, age 14, was compassionately euthanized after a rapid decline in his health.
Memo recently developed a kidney infection, a condition that is unfortunately common in aging cats of all sizes. The Animal Care and Veterinary teams partnered with several outside specialists and arranged for a mobile CT unit to come to the Zoo and assist with his evaluation. Unfortunately, the results revealed Memo was in renal failure, an irreversible condition.
Since then, the Zooโs care team worked tirelessly to ensure Memoโs comfort and wellbeing, closely monitoring him and conducting regular health and wellbeing assessments. Despite their extraordinary care, during the past few days his condition declined sharply and it was clear his quality of life was severely compromised.
We know this is painful news for our entire Zoo family; staff, volunteers, members, and guests alike. Determining the right moment to say goodbye to an animal is never easy and decisions like this are not taken lightly. Still, providing animals with a peaceful passing, free from suffering, is the final act of care we can provide for our animals.
Thank you to everyone who cared for him, learned from him, admired him, and honored him. Memo made an enduring impact on all of us, and he will be deeply missed.
If you have photos, videos, or memories of Memo, we invite you to share them with us in the comments below. Guests visiting in the coming days will also have the opportunity to share their memories and messages with his care team at the jaguar habitat.
