Gracie, a giraffe that escaped from a ranch near Leakey, remains on the loose in the Texas Hill Country.
Real County Animal Rescue
A giraffe has been wandering the Texas Hill Country for nearly two weeks, and despite an extensive search, Gracie remains missing.
The nearly 4-year-old giraffe escaped from Cedar Hollow Ranch near Leakey and was still at large Wednesday morning. Friday will mark two weeks since she disappeared.
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READ MORE: A giraffe is loose in Texas, and there’s a $5,000 reward to find her
Ranch manager Vick Jones said a promising lead recently fell apart after investigators discovered photos believed to show Gracie from last weekend were actually several days older than initially thought.
“We’re just regrouping and talking to new landowners to get permission to go on to more places,” Jones told Chron.
Jones remains convinced Gracie is still somewhere in the Hill Country near Leakey.
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“She’s out there. She’s in the area,” he said.
Finding her, however, has proven more difficult than many people might expect.
The search has been complicated by Real County’s vast ranches and sparse population.
“People think it’s a walk in the park, but it’s not,” Jones said. “She could be on these properties, and there would be absolutely no one to know it.”
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Jones has searched from a helicopter and said recent photos suggest Gracie may have been near ranches that searchers didn’t yet have permission to access. Texas property laws prevent search crews from simply entering private land without approval.
How to identify Gracie
Gracie arrived at Cedar Hollow Ranch a little more than a month ago from another Texas ranch. She is a reticulated giraffe, an endangered subspecies recognized by its striking coat of large brown patches outlined by bright white lines that form a net-like pattern.
One of Gracie’s most distinctive features is her ears. Unlike the pointed ears found on most giraffes, hers are rounded after she suffered frostbite as a calf.
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“She’s got little round ears like a little bear,” Jones said.
One of Gracie’s most distinctive features is her ears. Unlike the pointed ears found on most giraffes, hers are rounded after she suffered frostbite as a calf.
Real County Animal Rescue
If someone spots Gracie, Jones said they should not approach her.
“Don’t push her,” he said. “If you were walking and started her moving, she could move a long way in a real short period of time.”
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Instead, people should report the sighting and leave the animal undisturbed, so searchers have the best chance of reaching her.
The owner is offering a $5,000 reward for information leading to Gracie’s safe return.
Jones said he is not worried about the giraffe’s immediate well-being. The area has adequate food and water, and recent temperatures have not posed a problem. His biggest concern is finding Gracie in a location where she can be safely recovered and loaded into a trailer.
From local search to viral sensation
In the days since the sheriff’s office issued its alert, Gracie’s disappearance has drawn coverage from national outlets, including The New York Times, NBC News and USA Today, while social media has filled with memes, AI-generated images and false sightings.
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AI-generated images of Gracie the giraffe have circulated widely on social media.
“I now know what the meaning of the word viral means,” Jones said. “It’s just crazy for an old country man.”
Jones said some of those posts could leave people with the impression that Gracie has already been found.
“It’s false information out there,” he said. “Somebody might say, ‘Oh well, we don’t have to keep our eyes open anymore.'”
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Jones said he only contacted the sheriff’s office in the hopes that local ranch workers or landowners might spot the giraffe.
“People are calling me from everywhere,” he said. “If I’d have known this was gonna happen, I probably would not have gone to the sheriff’s office and asked them for help.”