The Brahman bull that was used to roam freely on Coney Island Park and fondly known as the Coney Island cow, is said to have passed away on 28 September after a routine health check.
This was announced by the National Parks Board (NParks) announced the news on Wednesday (12 Oct).
Earlier on 28 Sept, the bull was undergoing its annual health check by veterinarians and was sedated to take its blood and fecal samples, however, veterinarians were later unable to resuscitate the bull from its sedated state.
NParks explained, “Health checks are necessary for the cow’s own well being and for public health reasons, for example, to prevent the spread of diseases between animals and humans. Given its large size, sedating the cow was a standard procedure to ensure the safety of all personnel involved.”
Nparks said that Agri-Food & Veterinary Authority (AVA) has also done and concluded a post mortem investigations. The results show that the cow had chronic underlying illnesses; it likely died of heart and lung complications while sedated.
The bull was a breed of Zebu cattle from South Asia. No one knows how it got on Coney Island, it is believed to have roamed there for many years.
The bull was found when the park was developed, it was weak and in an undernourished condition. It has since been nursed back to health and undergoes regular checkups every six months. It foraged on the green areas on the island naturally.
The Coney Island Park was open to public on 10 October 2015.
The 50-hectare park, also known as Pulau Serangoon, is located off Singapore’s North East coast. It is known for its natural, rural atmosphere and boasts a wide variety of biodiversity, including mangroves, grasslands and coastal forests. Also rare flora and fauna such as the black-crowned night heron and the nationally endangered spotted wood owl can be spotted.
NParks said it was saddened to share that the Brahman cow has passed died, “The cow was a recognisable part of Coney Island Park and it will be missed,” NParks stated
