All the memes A to Zebra: How a missing animal in Tennessee inspired cakes, songs, more

Yahoo

04-06-2025

There's an old phrase popularized by Dr. Theodore Woodward from the University of Maryland in the 1940s that says, "if you hear hoofbeats, think horses, not zebras."
In Rutherford County, the sound of hoofbeats could actually be an escaped zebra that has been on the loose since May 31, one day after a county resident took the animal home as a pet.
Like many Middle Tennessee residents, and some beyond Middle Tennessee, Lauren Jones and her family of four have been captivated by the missing zebra, and have gotten creative on social media as the search for the animal continues.
Pictures, memes, videos and jokes about the zebra have flooded the Internet in the days since the animal's disappearance.
More: Zebras, kangaroos, giraffes: What Tennessee pet laws say residents can, can't own
While she's been glued to social media hoping for news of the animal's safe return, Jones, owner and operator of Bunny Cakes in Franklin, ditched her popcorn for a sweet treat.
"We hope he gets home ok. We're animal lovers," Jones said of herself and her family. The ongoing search gave her some baking inspiration. "Any time I see something in real life, it's just kind of an inspiration for the art of what I do. I think life's art. I think food's art."
Jones worked quickly and brought a zebra cake to life before posting a picture of it on social media.
Two 12-inch bourbon vanilla cakes were stacked atop each other and carved into the shape of zebra. They were filled with buttercream frosting. From there, homemade fondant was used to create the zebra's "hide" and a raised two-dimensional appearance of black stripes.
The bourbon vanilla flavor profile was left over from a Father's Day order she was working on involving French macaroons, Jones said.
The zebra's "fur" was created from fondant and then cut with scissors to give a ruffled appearance.
The ear is a piece of marshmallow fondant. It was shaped like a teardrop before Jones used a balling tool to hollow out its midsection, "to give the ear depth," she said. Edible food powder, similar to eyeshadow, was brushed onto the fondant to give it a pink appearance.
Jones isn't the only one to take inspiration from the zebra.
Others have used the African equine in a variety of creative ways.
The Rutherford County Sheriff's Office has not released the zebra's name, but that hasn't stopped people from speculating about it.
The zebra has inspired a song called "Ed The Zebra" by Michael Marcovich using Suno, an AI generated software.
"I've got a pet zebra, and his name is Ed. He used to be in my backyard and in my shed. He don't eat grain, he just eats hay. Well, the other night, he got away," reads one lyric.
The zebra's plight has Facebook user Diamond Shine's full attention.
In a June 1 post, Shine said the zebra has been the emotional support animal she didn't know she needed after having to put down a family dog recently.
"Somehow, this rogue zebra galloping through Murfreesboro has brought me more joy in the last 24 hours than I ever expected," she said. "The chaos. The memes. The chase. Ed."
While some are seemingly watching the zebra's every move, others are a bit more tongue-and-cheek.
There are AI-generated photos of a zebra with a Middle Tennessee State University fan at a bar, decked out in a University of Tennessee baseball uniform, recommending a spray tan at Serenity Skin and authorizing a 15% off sale all items at Love's Pizza in Murfreesboro.
The zebra's fame has also spread beyond Rutherford County.
In one photo, the zebra is having breakfast at Waffle House with the Sumner County bear. In another, he's at Café 931 in Clarksville waiting for Taco Tuesday on June 3.
"Who's joining the herd at Café 931," the restaurant asked.
In another AI photo post on Facebook, the zebra is seen being pulled from Percy Priest Lake in Nashville by the Tennessee National Guard, while another photo of a zebra on a rollercoaster is captioned, "the zebra hitched a ride with us to Dollywood. He said he had an amazing time, y'all."
The list goes on.
And as of press time for this story, so does the search for the zebra, the Rutherford County Sheriff's Office reported.
Reach reporter Craig Shoup by email at [e-mail] and on X @Craig_Shoup. To support his work, sign up for a digital subscription to www.tennessean.com.
This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: How zebra 'Ed,' on the run in TN, inspires memes, cakes and AI songs