An eagle from Kent who was the mascot of a Premier League football club has died after suffering a heart attack.

Kayla, a 26-year-old bald eagle, passed away yesterday after falling ill last month at Eagle Heights Wildlife Foundation, in Eysnford, near Dartford.

The raptor had been the club mascot of London side Crystal Palace Football Club, recently entering her 10th year.

After suffering a number of seizures Kayla was diagnosed with gout - a serious condition in birds of prey.

A fundraising page was set up to pay for the medical bills while the Foundation is closed due to the pandemic and it quickly met its £3,000 target.

Paying tribute her in a statement Eagle Heights said: "It is with great pain and deep sadness that we must inform you, Kayla, our beautiful Bald Eagle, passed away after suffering a fatal heart attack.

"We thank every single person that had donated towards her veterinary bill and her care. It is thanks to you all that we were able to get her the very best treatment available and know that we did everything possible for her.

"She is now at peace. To say she will be missed is not enough.

"We are beyond grief and cannot think of our lives without her, but we try to take comfort from knowing she is no longer in pain and hope that she is soaring above us, finally reunited with her sister."

Born in the wilds of Canada in 1994, Kayla and her sister were stolen from their natural habitat as youngsters, but were later rescued when the authorities were alerted to the illegal theft.

Efforts to release the bird back into the wild proved unsuccessful. Having been released, the two eagles made their home on top of a University Campus - becoming a nuisance to students - and showed no signs that they could hunt for their own food.

Attempts to take them to a rehabilitation centre and other zoos didn't work out either, due to their aggression, which sadly led to Kayla’s sister being euthanised.

Kayla was close to meeting the same fate, until Eagle Heights was contacted - due to the fact the Foundation already had a bald eagle from a Zoo in Canada and were known for their good practice with behavioural issues - and in 1998 Kayla arrived safely in Eynsford.

She went on to find fame as Crystal Palace's mascot, and is now in her tenth year representing the club - but even that brought its own difficulties.

In 2015 she was attacked by Charlton Athletic supporter Daniel Boylett, who was later convicted of trying to punch her during Charlton's 4-1 loss to Palace in the Capital One Cup third round tie.

But Kayla's carrier has seen an equal amount of highs - in 2008 she was photographed for the UK cover of the Kings of Leon album 'Only by the Night', and has been used on film sets including that of Clash of the Titans.

Since reaching the target for Kayla, Eagle Heights has also launched a Crowdfunder page to help it bounce back from the closure during coronavirus.

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