AFP 29 June 04 Hong Kong's celebrity crocodile ill with muscle disease
Hong Kong (AFP): Hong Kong's celebrity crocodile is suffering from a potentially fatal muscle disease after being "frightened" and confined since its capture three weeks ago, according to a press report.
The 1.5-metre female croc, nicknamed Gucci by designer-label obsessed Hong Kongers, is suffering from capture myopathy, caused by being kept in a confined area, said Ming Pao, citing Idy Wong of the Kadoorie Farm nature reserve, where the reptile is being kept in a three-month quarantine.
Wong said if the animal is not treated immediately and properly, the ailment could turn deadly, developing into kidney disease.
She added the reptile is still refusing to eat and has been injected with various kinds of vitamins to boost its immune system.
"We are worried about the little crocodile's health ... We will try our best not to disturb her," Wong was quoted as saying.
Gucci was moved into her new purpose-built home last Wednesday from a government quarantine pen where it was put after its eight months on the run came to an end on June 10.
Crocodiles are not native to Hong Kong and Gucci's appearance made her an immediate celebrity when she first appeared in a stream in the northern polluted New Territories in November.
During her time on the run, Gucci evaded capture by the world's most famous crocodile hunter, Australian naturalist John Lever, and gave the slip to hunters from mainland China as well as local government wildlife experts.
Hong Kong's celebrity crocodile ill with muscle disease