Danish Zoo Kills 18-Month-Old Giraffe and Feeds Carcass to Lions [VIDEO]

Regardless of the huge international outcry, a Danish Zoo killed a healthy giraffe with a bolt gun and slaughtered it in order to avoid inbreeding. The carcass of the giraffe was cut open in front of a large crowd and later used to feed hungry lions.

Despite offers worth $680,724 from two different wildlife parks and an international online petition condemning the killing of Marius - the giraffe, Copenhagen Zoo killed the healthy animal saying its genes were too common and useless for breeding.

Officials then ripped the dead animal's carcass in front of a large crowd that included children. They killed the 18-month-old giraffe using a shot gun.

"Our giraffes are part of an international breeding program, which has a purpose of ensuring a sound and healthy population of giraffes," Bengt Holst, scientific director at Copenhagen Zoo, told CNN. "It can only be done by matching the genetic composition of the various animals with the available space. ... When giraffes breed as well as they do now, then you will inevitably run into so-called surplus problems now and then."

The zoo keepers preferred bolt gun over euthanasia, especially because they planned on giving Marius's meat to the lions and other carnivorous animals in the zoo. Using an intravenous injection would only contaminate the meat.

"I stood behind with a rifle, and when he put his head forward and ate the rye bread, then I shot him through the brain," he said. "It sounds violent, but it means that Marius had no idea of what was coming. He got his bread, and then he died," Mads Bertelsen, the zoo veterinarian, was quoted in Reuters TV.

As this brutal act took place within the boundaries of the zoo, several animal rights activists took to the streets and crowded outside the zoo protesting the kill. But this didn't stop the zoo officials from carrying out the public autopsy.

In order to manage giraffe population, the zoo kills nearly 20-30 giraffes each year. It doesn't give animals contraceptives as they damage the internal organs.

The reason why they put down offers from other zoos was: "Only zoos that follow certain rules can be part of international breeding programmes. In Europe this is only the zoos that are members of the European Association of Zoos and Aquaria (EAZA). EAZA is an association that counts just over 300 members," as stated on the official site.