Fairfax County officials are investigating an allegation of animal cruelty at the Reston Zoo.
According to a search warrant, an unnamed employee told a Fairfax County officer he had placed a sick wallaby in a crate at the zoo Thursday. He later saw an empty crate next to a water spigot with a five gallon bucket of water.
The employee says he then jumped into a trash bin and found a trash bag with a dead, wet wallaby.
An animal control officer heard a different story from the zoo director, who claims she humanely euthanized the wallaby with an IV injection of the drug Beuthanasia-D, documents say, but investigators discovered the zoo does not legally have the permits or training to administer the drug.
A former northern Virginia animal control officer who wanted her identity hidden said not having the proper training or state certificates is a no-no.
Attempts to contact the unnamed zoo director were unsuccessful. A woman who answered the phone at the Reston Zoo's office quickly said “no comment” and hung up when News4 asked to speak to the director.
No animal cruelty charges have been filed against the Reston Zoo as of yet.
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