Duluth zoo's Kodiak bear Phoebe is euthanized

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DULUTH, Minn. (AP) — Officials at the Lake Superior Zoo in Duluth say they have euthanized their 28-year-old Kodiak brown bear, Phoebe.

The bear died Tuesday after struggling for many months with arthritis. Zoo veterinarian Louise Beyea says it became increasingly difficult for Phoebe to eat and move.

Zookeepers said they were also worried that because of Phoebe's advanced age and deteriorating health, she would have been unable to defend herself if the younger grizzly bear, named Trouble, attacked her.

Phoebe was born at the Pittsburgh Zoo and donated to the Lake Superior Zoo in 1988, when she was 15 months old. Her body is now at the University of Minnesota for examination.

The zoo has not decided whether to replace Phoebe.