Star, a reindeer loved by many in his Alaskan community, has died after surveillance video captured an unknown person dousing the animal’s quarters in a mysterious liquid.
“His health was so bad that he was not doing very well,” Star’s owner Albert Whitehead told Alaska Public Media in an interview published on April 2. “He was suffering.”
“Suddenly he relapsed, and some other issues developed. So [I] really don’t know what caused him to die. The vets now are going through a necropsy with him, and we won’t have a result of that for a couple weeks,” he said.
Star was euthanized on April 1.
Video footage shared by the Anchorage Police Department on Feb. 28, showed a person attempting to steal Star on Feb. 20.
The individual reportedly used heavy-duty bolt cutters to gain entry to Star’s enclosure.
Since the incident, 8-year-old Star began experiencing pneumonia, digestion issues and rapid weight loss, Whitehead told the Associated Press on March 13.
The reindeer was evaluated at the local veterinarian clinic.
“I think we’ve done everything possible for him,” Whitehead said. Veterinarian Sabrieta Holland told the AP at the time that the reindeer’s prognosis was “guarded.”
Per the AP, an unknown individual also snuck into Star’s pen in January and spent approximately five minutes with the reindeer before leaving. It was unknown what the person did, but the animal began losing weight shortly after.
On Feb. 20, police found Star roaming the streets of downtown Anchorage. After the reindeer was returned to Whitehead, he reviewed his security cameras and saw the person using bolt cutters. Star had followed the person out of his pen and into the neighborhood.
The next night, Whitehead watched his video feed and saw a man wearing a scarf and hit the reindeer in the face with an unknown substance twice. Whitehead told the AP he ran out to confront the person.
“I yelled at him to stop, ‘What the hell are you doing? What are you spraying on the animal? Don’t do that, quit that!’ ” Whitehead said.
The intruder told him, “I’m trying to help Star.”
“I have no idea what he meant by that,” Whitehead told the AP.
There have been no arrests or updates made regarding the incidents with Star as of Monday, reports Alaska Public Media.
A reindeer has been living in downtown Anchorage thanks to a tradition started by a couple in the 1960s. When Alaska Public Media asked Whitehead if he thought the tradition could continue, he had a straightforward response.
“Would you be willing to put another animal into that enclosure, knowing there’s somebody out there that [was] doing this kind of stuff to him?” he replied.