Updated: 5:24 PM EST Mar 4, 2021 Anuli, an 8-year-old giraffe at The Maryland Zoo, died unexpectedly Wednesday night. "We are stunned by this sudden loss," Kirby Fowler, president and CEO of The Maryland Zoo, said in a statement. "Anuli was an integral part of the giraffe herd and has been a favorite of staff and visitors alike since she arrived here in 2013." Anuli had been under treatment since October for episodes of abdominal distension in her rumen, the first stomach."We were able to diagnose this condition with voluntary ultrasound training, as well as monitor her health with voluntary blood draws," Dr. Ellen Bronson, senior director of animal health, conservation and research at the zoo, said in a statement. "She had been under treatment with dietary modifications, and medical treatments and we had been able to manage her quite well in the past few months. However, the condition is not fully treatable and we believe that it played a role in her sudden death.""Not only were the veterinary and animal care teams closely monitoring her during the day in person, we were also observing her behavior via closed-circuit cameras," Erin Grimm, mammal collection and conservation manager at the zoo, said in a statement. "Last night, an animal care team member saw her trying to lie down awkwardly and knew something was wrong. We quickly mobilized our team and came back to the zoo. Although we arrived in less than 20 minutes, sadly she had already passed. We are devastated and will miss her greatly."A necropsy is being performed to determine the exact cause of Anuli's death.