For Immediate Release: July 8, 2009
Sad Day for Philly Elephants
Philly Elephants Relocated to Another Small Pen and Cement Barn at Breeding Facility Despite Offer of Spacious Sanctuary Home
Philadelphia, Pa. – Philadelphia elephants Kallie and Bette’s reported arrival today at the Pittsburgh Zoo’s breeding annex in central Pennsylvania was met with shock and dismay from local citizens who had fought for years to transfer the elephants to an accredited sanctuary. Local grassroots group Friends of Philly Zoo Elephants vows to continue its work to rescue the elephants, who had been offered a lifelong home at no charge at the Performing Animal Welfare Society (PAWS) sanctuary in California nearly three years ago, with a protest this Saturday and monthly demonstrations at the Zoo.
More than 10,000 local citizens have signed petitions calling on the Zoo to send the elephants to the PAWS sanctuary. Despite this overwhelming public support, the Zoo has instead chosen to mislead the public on its plans for the elephants by falsely describing the temporary breeding and holding facility, which is slotted to breed zebras, cheetahs, rhinos and African wild dogs and elephants for zoo display, as a sanctuary. A true sanctuary provides a lifelong home and does not allow the use of bullhooks or other pain-inflicting devices to control the elephants; the breeding facility does not meet these two criteria.
What: Demonstration
When: Saturday, July 11, 12:00 p.m. (and the first Saturday of each month in the future)
Where: Philadelphia Zoo, main entrance
Of particular concern is the Zoo’s stated plan to breed Kallie and Bette, who are both 27 years of age, possibly using artificial insemination – an extremely invasive and painful procedure for elephants. The zoo industry has significant data that highlights the dangers associated with the first-time breeding of elephants over the age of 25 years.
“The fact that breeding Kallie and Bette at their age is still on the table proves that the zoo is not acting in the best interest of these elephants,” said FPZE spokesperson Marianne Bessey. “It’s well-documented that first-time breeding of elephants at their age will risk their lives. Kallie and Bette, both 27, aren’t going to get any younger in Pittsburgh, so there should be nothing to 'evaluate' about breeding them – if the Zoo truly cared about Kallie and Bette, the answer to whether or not they will be bred would be an unequivocal ‘no.’”
In addition, the use of bullhooks, an out-dated, circus-style method of training phased out by many zoos including the North Carolina Zoo and the Oakland Zoo nearly twenty years ago, shows the zoo’s failure to progress, says Bessey. “The Philly Zoo is living in the past with its defense of bullhook use. It’s sad that the public continues to be misled and wrongly believes that the elephants are going to a better place. In fact, nothing is really changing for Kallie and Bette.”
On average, elephants in zoos die at roughly half their natural lifespan of 60 to 70 years. The leading cause of death for elephants in zoos is foot- and joint- related problems created by the lack of space in zoos.
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