Pinky (Flamingo)
Pinky (Flamingo)
Pinky was a Chilean flamingo who worked as an animal ambassador at the SeaWorld owned theme park Busch Gardens Tampa. Pinky was hatched at Busch Gardens Tampa in 1996. [3]
She was well known for ability to flamenco dance.
Death
On August 2, 2016 Pinky was attacked by Joseph Anthony Corrao. He grabbed Pinky and threw her down in a fit of rage when his mother yelled at him. Pinky's foot was almost severed and was later put down due to the severity of the injuries she received from the attack. [0]
The park had wrote in statement that "Pinky was a beloved member of the Busch Gardens Tampa Bay family and made many appearances on behalf of the park's conservation and education efforts," and that "She will be sorely missed."
Statement by SeaWorld CEO Joel Manby:
“SeaWorld will strongly urge prosecution in this case, and for any person who engages in this sort of cruel behavior towards animals,” and that “Pinky was a beloved member of the Busch Gardens Tampa Bay family, and she will be sorely missed.
Our Ambassador team members are appalled by this incident, and I am sure they share my view that our state must have a zero-tolerance policy for this kind of cruelty.”