Escaped zebra Ed became a celebrity after remaining on the run for over a week in Tennessee.
'Celebrity' Escaped Zebra Ed Airlifted Back to Safety After a Week on the Run
Earlier this year, a zebra nicknamed Ed became famous for being on the run from the law for an entire week, before police captured and dramatically airlifted him through the Tennessee skies.
In late May, the Rutherford County Sheriff's Office alerted the public via social media that a pet zebra had been "on the loose" and "wreaking havoc" on a local interstate.
"Sheriff’s deputies had to close the interstate because the zebra was running through traffic on both sides of the highway," they wrote on Facebook before explaining that the road was now reopened.
The police later updated the post to share that the zebra's owners had only just brought him to their farm the previous day, and that the search for the fugitive beast continued.
Ed the zebra is pictured here on the run from the police.
As the search for Ed continued, he became something of a meme — especially among local police departments including the Metropolitan Nashville Police Department and the Lebanon Police Department.
On June 2, Rutherford County police shared the following update: "The owner of the missing zebra just notified the Rutherford County Sheriff’s Office dispatch the animal remains at large Monday afternoon. The owner told the Sheriff's Office he is using several professional tracking groups and K9s to search for the missing zebra."
Ed was airlifted via helicopter.
On June 6, Rutherford County police said that the zebra had been spotted near Christiana, Tenn., and asked the public to avoid the area so as not to scare him.
Later, they updated the post to stress the following: "The zebra's owner reported the presence of people and cameras scaring the zebra and potentially harming the efforts to secure the zebra. Please avoid the area to allow the safe recovery of the zebra."
Ed was transported from the Tennessee skies to an animal trailer that brought him home.
Then at last on June 8, the Sheriff's Office shared that "celebrity" Ed had been "rescued safely" and posted an incredibly action-packed video of the zebra being airlifted through the sky while attached to a helicopter.
He was placed into an animal trailer and soon returned to his owners, Taylor and Laura Ford.
Asked how Ed was able to escape the Fords' farm, Laura told Inside Edition, "We're not 100 percent sure, but we know that there wasn't like a gate or a fence that was broken, or a gate that was left open. We think that it probably just... hopped, just jumped over the fence."
Laura continued, "Our biggest concern was that we didn't want anyone to get hurt trying to look for him or for him to cause a car accident, or for him to get hurt."
Little Debbie sent Rutherford County police a thank you gift basket for rescuing Ed.
Having caught wind of the viral, somewhat surreal story, the confectionery brand Little Debbie later sent the Sheriff's Office a thank you letter from its mascot Zain along with a gift basket stuffed full of their Zebra Cakes, plus "mini Zebra donuts, mugs, T-shirts and magnets," according to a police Facebook post.
And in case you were wondering, yes, it's legal to own a pet zebra in Tennessee.
According to The Tennessean, other nontraditional pets you can own in the state include chipmunks, chinchillas, camels, giraffes, ostriches and kangaroos. Although when it comes to hopping fences (looking at you, Ed), we're not sure we would recommend that last one.