On August 7th, 2019, at approximately 4:45pm, the New Braunfels Police Department was made aware of a pair of zebras that had escaped their pen. The zebras had been sold to a property owner off of Hwy 46 South earlier in the day, and they had somehow escaped the property and swam across the Guadalupe River. One of the zebras then remained in that immediate area while the other began making its way down a number of busy New Braunfels streets.
NBPD officers responded to assist New Braunfels Animal Control with making sure the zebra and the general public were safe as the zebra made its way across the city. The animal both trotted and galloped across numerous busy streets and intersections including Seguin Avenue, underneath I-35, Castell Avenue, Bus. 35, Walnut Avenue, the I-35 frontage road, and Loop 337. Throughout this journey, officers were able to successfully keep the animal and the general public from being injured.
The animal eventually slowed down and remained relatively contained in the area of Loop 337 and West San Antonio Street. That’s when a helicopter team (manned by the original owners of the animal) arrived and, in tandem, NBPD and the helicopter team spent roughly the next hour and a half attempting to corral the animal safely so that the helicopter team could tranquilize it. Eventually, the zebra was successfully sedated in a brushy area alongside some nearby railroad tracks. The animal was then harnessed, briefly airlifted to a nearby truck and trailer, and returned to its rightful owners. In the hours since the incident was resolved, NBPD was saddened to hear that the zebra had died sometime after it was returned to its owners.
The second zebra that had escaped its pen has since returned to its property and is fully accounted for, and, we understand, with precautions taken to prevent another escape. NBPD appreciates all those that waited patiently in traffic, called in zebra sightings, and helped spread the word about the missing zebras.