Twitter users rejoiced after the Dallas Zoo announced that the missing clouded leopard was found unharmed near her original habitat.
On Friday, the zoo announced on Twitter that the premises would be closed “due to a serious situation,” stating that “a non-dangerous animal [was] out of its habitat.” Nova, a clouded leopard weighing 25 pounds, was not in her habitat at the scheduled check-in time, the zoo said.
Immediately, Twitter users flocked to share their reactions to the news.
A clouded leopard is missing from its habitat at the Dallas Zoo and my toxic trait is I wanna go give it a lil snuggle
My awesome new pet clouded leopard is totally unrelated to yesterdays Dallas Zoo security camera failure.
A SWAT team was dispatched to the zoo under the impression that the release of the animal was an “intentional act,” Sgt. Warren Mitchell of the Dallas police said in a press conference on Friday. “When we initially responded to the location on a report of a missing clouded leopard, we first dispatched our SWAT officers out here ... not clearly understanding what a ‘clouded leopard’ was. We were thinking perhaps a big cat.”
Clouded leopards are “the smallest of the big cats” and originate in Southeast Asia. The International Union for Conservation of Nature has listed the animal as a vulnerable species, with a declining population. Nova was bred in Dallas and then born in the Houston Zoo alongside her sister, according to CBS News.
the clouded leopard has actually been found picking up a shift at target
@DallasZoo Maybe she went to 7-11 to get a Mega Millions ticket and a slurpee?
nova the clouded leopard from the dallas zoo has now been missing for 2+ hours. she’s prob still in line at a nearby whataburger drive-thru which means she has another 40 mins to wait
Police launched a criminal investigation on Friday amid suspicions that the fence enclosure was cut. The department deployed infrared drones to aid in the search. Online, people shared their personal theories about Nova’s jaunt outside the cage.
me and my new clouded leopard i bought in the Fuel City parking lot
People cheekily offered up suggestions to help aid the search. “Jiggle the can opener,” one recommended. “Has anyone tried pspspsps,” another asked.
“A laser pointer and a big ass bag of cat treats would have resolved this in 20 minutes,” one user said.
@DallasZoo These are like $4 a pack at Target man y’all not trying hard enough for me 😤
The Dallas Zoo is missing a clouded leopard and people are flooding this thread with replies about how to find a lost cat ("have you tried calling out 'here kitty kitty?'") A+ content that exemplifies why none of us will ever leave this app https://t.co/aSGlUkf9CR
At 6:34pm on Friday, the zoo tweeted again that Nova had been found. But many have defended Nova’s escape, urging her to give her own statement.
Become ungovernable, clouded leopard https://t.co/nDZBY8np4u
that poor clouded leopard, nobody should have to live in Dallas