Annie the echidna is a legend at your Toronto Zoo! Besides being the only monotreme in Canada and one of the oldest zoo residents at 42 years of age, she is probably the most elusive individual on site! In addition, she has also had one of the longest-running veterinary cases.

In 1993, she was diagnosed as having calcinosis circumscripta (boney deposit beneath the skin, not directly affecting the bones of the foot) on her front left foot. The treatment for this non-malignant growth is removal via surgery, but given its stable size, location, and lack of impact on her gait, the team decided against surgery.

In the Spring of 2024, discussions between her care team and the vets raised concerns that although the mass was not new, it could in fact be causing her discomfort and interfering with her burrowing. The decision was made to try surgical removal once she could be apprehended, which was a challenge in itself.

On April 26, 2024, Annie was moved to the Wildlife Health and Science Centre for surgery. The surgery went smoothly, and two masses were successfully removed from her palm.

As she is a digger by nature, it was crucial that the surgical site be fully healed before returning to substrate in her habitat. Eventually and after nearly two months of recovery in the Wildlife Health and Science Centre, Annie returned to the Australasia pavilion on June 13. Once she was re-introduced into her habitat, met her new roommates (two Red-Tailed Black Cockatoos), and had some much-deserved rest, it seemed as though she was much more comfortable emerging from her burrow to explore her space.