Fed Bar Rare Zebra From Breeding

ByABC News
January 9, 2001, 2:16 PM

Jan. 9 -- A 4-year-old zebra named Barcode has reachedhis sexual maturity and is ready to do his part to perpetuate hisrare and threatened species.

But the federal government has banned Barcode from breeding,saying his uncertain pedigree could do more harm than good. So hespends his days roaming a northern Virginia farm, lonely andlooking for love.

He is caught in an ethical dilemma, said Barcodes owner,Corine Schmitz. Hes a stallion. His being alone, without afemale, is almost inhumane.

Rare Breed

Barcode is a Grevys zebra. Only about 5,400 of them exist inthe wild, with about 200 more in North American zoos. Under federallaw they are a threatened species not as dire as endangered, butstill protected.

Schmitz, a 37-year-old hospital nurse who trains horses as ahobby, bought Barcode three years ago from a doctor in Texas. Shesaid she did not know it was illegal under federal law for her totransport the animal to Virginia. Her intention at the time was tobreed him, or at least freeze his sperm for future breedingefforts.

I grew up in Zaire, and I saw a lot of poaching, a lot ofdestruction of habitat, Schmitz said. Theres going to be lessand less genetic diversity.

Trained Like a Horse

As she raised Barcode, Schmitz trained him like a horse andeventually learned to ride him, to the amazement of most everybodyfamiliar with equines. The two led a parade in Warrenton two yearsago, and she even completed a 35-mile endurance race.

When Schmitz learned that she had broken the law by bringingBarcode to Virginia, she contacted the U.S. Fish and WildlifeService. Normally, the government would seize an animal likeBarcode, but agents made an exception in Schmitzs case.

Shes obviously built a rapport with this animal. It takes along time to develop that kind of bond, said wildlife agent MaryHolt. The best place for that animal to be is with her.