RUTHERFORD CO., Tenn. (WTVF) — Okay, let's talk about the most famous, non-indigenous mammal ever to make headlines in Tennessee, much less the rest of the country.
A Zebra, best known as Ed, escaped from a ranch in Rutherford Co., and spent a week on the run thrilling all who saw him right up until he was safely captured..
Ed's adventure qualifies as on of the top stories of 2025.
The enduring image of the striped animal is of him being airlifted by helicopter to safety after a week-long odyssey that captivated the country.
How on Earth did it come to this—an African zebra on the run in Tennessee?
Taylor Ford said you can start here
Taylor and his wife Laura bought the zebra just one day before it escaped in May.
That's when a neighbor called to tell Taylor a large animal was roaming free nearby.
"He said I need to go see—there's a zebra that's escaped in Christiana and I need to go see if it's ours. I looked and said mostly likely it's not someone else's."
Sure enough, it was Ed and the escape triggered a week-long search for the zebra with several sightings.
But catching the animal proved tricky.
"It was so stressful our fear of him near the road and someone getting hurt," Taylor said.
The Fords said they heard from a cowboy in middle Tennessee offering to help.
But you can't safely lasso a wild zebra like you would a horse.
A tranquilizer dart was ruled out in fear that Ed could still run for minutes and end up in a road.
So they hired a team out of Texas to, as Taylor explained, "chase it out with a gator, away from the interstate and a team int he woods push it out into the open field."
Drones followed as a helicopter swooped down and dropped a net over the zebra.
Ed was restrained and airlifted away.
The Fords said Ed was unharmed, safe and became a national sensation.
"No one could ever imagine the amount of calls and texts," Taylor said.
Or shout outs from the main stage of this past summer's CMA Fest in Nashville.
"The zebra, Ed the zebra, I can happily report tonight that he's been safely airlifted," an announcer cheered.
It's been quite a ride for Ed since.
He's since been relocated to a wildlife refuge in Texas and is keeping busy.
And his image continues to surface on memorabilia including socks, shirts and so much more more.
One Tennessean even made a children's book to honor Ed.
And just this month, a statue of Ed was on a float in the Murfreesboro Christmas Parade.
Ed the zebra may be gone from Tennessee, but he's certainly not forgotten.
By the way, Ed's owners say they don't rule out the possibility of someday bringing the zebra back to Tennessee, but they'll first need a safe place for him to stay—where he can't escape.
Do you have more information about this story? You can email me at Nick.beres@newschannel5.clm
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