Fence on wolf enclosure ‘deliberately damaged’ at Aldergrove zoo

The wolf escape at the Greater Vancouver Zoo on Tuesday morning appears to have been caused by deliberate vandalism, Langley RCMP have confirmed.

Zoo staff found the wolves out of their enclosure when they arrived in the morning. The Aldergrove-area zoo was closed on Tuesday and Wednesday, but by the end of the day on Tuesday all but one wolf was accounted for, according to a statement issued by the zoo.

Langley Mounties have opened an investigation, and consider the incident to be a break and enter.

“It’s believed that the fence was deliberately damaged,” said Cpl. Holly Largy, spokesperson for the Langley RCMP.

As far as police have determined so far, there was no damage to other enclosures.

Largy noted there are no surveillance cameras near the wolf enclosure.

The zoo’s website listed nine wolves between one and three years old, along with a litter of cubs.

The zoo said Tuesday there is no danger to the public, and asked anyone who sees a wolf in the area to contact the zoo at 604-856-6825 Ext. 2004, the Langley RCMP at 604-532-3200, or the B.C. Conservation Officer Service at 1-877-952-7277.

The zoo sits near the Naval Radio Section Aldergrove, a Canadian Forces military facility that has large antennas used for communications with ships at sea.

The antennas are in a large swathe of about 1,000 acres of mostly forest, swamp, and open fields, including land on the east and west sides of 264th Street.

To the north across Highway one, as well as to the east and west are semi-rural and rural areas, including working farms and small hobby farms.

READ MORE: Wolves escape from Aldergrove’s Greater Vancouver Zoo, one still at large

There have been previous break-ins at the zoo, including an attack in 2008 that resulted in the theft of one spider monkey and the killing of her longtime mate, and a 1998 theft of two squirrel monkeys, which were recovered from a local home a few days later.