Gingerbread, an African lion that lived at the Santa Barbara Zoo for 13 of her 18 years, was humanely euthanized on Friday after a prolonged illness.

Born at the Indianapolis Zoo on May 29, 1998, Gingerbread was considered geriatric at age 18 years, 8 months.

The median life expectancy for African lions under human care is 16.8 years, meaning that half the population don’t live to be 16.8 years old, and the other half live longer.

“Gingerbread has been dealing with health issues for the past several months, and we’ve been working with a number of specialists to treat her condition,” says Director of Animal Health and Care Julie Barnes. “Most recently, we had a veterinary internal medicine specialist return to assist with performing more tests, including an ultrasound and biopsies.

“Gingerbread’s spleen appeared abnormal, and her blood results were getting worse. Though she recovered from the procedure, she had declined rapidly since her last examination. Friday morning she was extremely lethargic and did not respond to keepers. Based on her serious medical condition and advanced age, the decision was made for humane euthanasia.”

A necropsy will be performed to determine the cause of the elderly lion’s illness; results will not be available for several weeks.

“She lived a very long and full life,” added Barnes, “was loved by everyone who looked after her at the Zoo, adored by our guests, and had a lifelong companion in our male lion Chadwick.”

Barnes notes that animals under human care are now living longer due to the high quality of geriatric care now available. The Zoo’s Animal Care staff had been closely monitoring Gingerbread for months and adapted her care as her illness progressed.

Her diet was changed to include more of her favorite foods in order to maintain her body weight, for example, and palliative care was provided for arthritis and a jaw condition.

Chadwick, aged 19, also receives special care related to age and poor vision.