On October 25, 2009, Vega, one of the zoo's African painted dogs gave birth to a litter of nine live puppies, and one dead puppy. Vega died the next day, leaving her puppies orphaned. To help nurse and raise the dogs, the zoo found a domesticated dog, Honey, from a local shelter who had recently given birth and was still lactating. Honey immediately took to the puppies and fed them. At the same time, the zoo's vet staff hand-fed the puppies a liquid diet fortified with enzymes. Although, four of the remaining puppies died - the typical mortality rate for African painted dogs is 50 percent - the remaining five were healthy and doing well after a month. The painted dogs were involved in the death of a young boy in November 2012, during which one dog was shot, and the exhibit was closed. The painted dogs left the zoo in 2013 and are moved to other zoos.