Zoo to send 2 elephants to sanctuaries
Director defies recommendation to ship pachyderms to other zoos
SAN FRANCISCO Chronicle
Patricia Yollin
Jun 3rd, 2004

In the latest twist in the world of pachyderm politics, the San Francisco Zoo has decided to send its two remaining elephants to a sanctuary, ignoring the recommendation of the national organization that accredits it. African elephant Lulu and Asian elephant Tinkerbelle, both 38, turned into political animals, so to speak, after the deaths of companions Maybelle and Calle earlier this year.
The elephants -- destined for relocation since early May -- might not even end up in the same place. They could go to the Performing Animal Welfare Society sanctuary in the Calaveras County town of San Andreas or the Elephant Sanctuary in Hohenwald, Tenn. "It could take anywhere from three to four months," zoo Director Manuel Mollinedo said Wednesday, a few hours before announcing his decision at the monthly meeting of the Joint Zoo Committee, which oversees zoo operations. Last week, the zoo received a letter from the powerful American Zoo and Aquarium Association, which is located in Silver Spring, Md., and represents 214 institutions in the United States, Canada, Bermuda and Hong Kong.

In the letter, the AZA said four of its member zoos -- which the association did not name -- ere interested in acquiring Lulu and Tinkerbelle.

However, Mollinedo said, "Sanctuaries have additional space. But it's not just the space, it's how you manage the animals. If you just dump a bunch of food in front of them, they're not going to be utilizing the space. There are zoos that, if they had expressed an interest, I would have been more inclined to send them there." He praised the elephant programs at the San Diego Wildlife Park and zoos in Seattle and Portland, Ore. Those places, however, were not named by the AZA as interested parties. After learning through the rumor mill which sites were interested, Mollinedo chose the sanctuary route instead -- which means the San Francisco Zoo will still be responsible for the two elephants.

In the politics of zoo society -- easily as complicated as San Francisco's -- the zoo association is rarely challenged. "I have a lot of respect for the AZA. This could jeopardize our accreditation," said Mollinedo, who has never gone against the organization before. "I'm hoping it doesn't. This is extremely serious." Sydney Butler, executive director of the AZA, agreed. He said the San Francisco Zoo would have to go through a lengthy conflict resolution process with the association that could, if not resolved, "result in the loss of accreditation for the San Francisco Zoo and potentially an ethics charge."

Association membership opens doors to a lot of things, said zoo spokeswoman Nancy Chan. For example, it allows zoos to exchange animals easily, do field conservation projects, obtain federal funds, and conduct captive breeding programs. Without it, the San Francisco Zoo would be a lone wolf, "estranged from its professional community," Butler said. By opting for sanctuaries, Mollinedo is also, in effect, beating to the punch the Board of Supervisors, which is scheduled to vote Tuesday on a nonbinding resolution to move the two pachyderms to a refuge immediately. Earlier in the day, before learning of the zoo's decision, Butler had written to Matt Gonzalez, president of the Board of Supervisors, asking that the vote be delayed until Aug. 3. "At the end of that time, everyone will be more informed," Butler wrote.

However, Mollinedo said, "For us, there's a sense of urgency." He added that the welfare of both the elephants and the beleaguered keepers was at stake. Mollinedo, who resurrected the decrepit and decaying Los Angeles Zoo during a seven-year tenure, took over in San Francisco on Feb. 1 and soon found himself dealing with elephant issues. Calle, suffering from degenerative joint disease, was euthanized on March 7 at age 37. Maybelle, 43, expired suddenly of heart failure on April 22. In captivity, elephants -- highly social herd animals -- can survive into their early 50s. Outraged animal rights activists and concerned city officials got involved.

There were protests, pickets, leafleting, arrests, city committees to navigate, the mechanics of the AZA's Elephant Species Survival Plan to explain. "This whole situation got so politicized. Everyone started digging in their heels," Mollinedo said. "The problem I'm faced with is I have a lone African elephant in one exhibit and a lone Asian in the other. ... And never in my wildest dreams did I think I'd be in charge of a zoo with two elephant deaths so soon." He's planning to send a veterinarian and keeper to the sanctuaries in California and Tennessee to take a look at husbandry techniques, veterinary care and funding.

The Joint Zoo Committee must approve the move.

Detroit Zoo to give elephants to a refuge

Detroit Free Press

May 20th, 2004

ROYAL OAK, Mich. (AP) -- After spending a combined 22 years in captivity at the Detroit Zoo, Winky and Wanda will live out their days in freedom.

The female Asian elephants will be sent to one of two U.S. refuges this summer or early fall. The Detroit Zoo will become the nation's first major animal facility to give away its elephants solely on ethical grounds, according to the Humane Society of the United States.

"People's traditional expectation of zoos is that they see lions and tigers and elephants," zoo director Ron Kagan told the Detroit Free Press for a story published Thursday. "But it's also their expectation that an animal has a good life."

The Detroit Zoo is widely recognized for its superior animal care. But Kagan said life in captivity nevertheless has caused physical and psychological problems for Winky, 51, and Wanda, who is in her mid-40s.

In the wild, female Asian elephants typically roam 30 miles a day. They form solid social bonds with members of their herds and strongly desire physical and intellectual stimulation.

But Winky and Wanda have lived through bitter Michigan winters for 14 years and eight years, respectively. They also have experienced boredom and stress while living inside their one-acre enclosure -- 16 times what the American Zoo and Aquarium Association requires of its members.

Wanda takes anti-inflammatory medication for chronic arthritis in her front legs. Winky has foot problems that might be related to sleeping unnaturally in a standing position; elephants sleep on soft surfaces in the wild.

"Now we understand how much more is needed to be able to meet all the physical and psychological needs of elephants in captivity, especially in a cold climate," Kagan wrote in memorandum explaining the decision.

The memo said it would cost $30 million to $50 million and require up to 20 acres of land to provide an adequate environment for the elephants. The price was so high it was never considered.

Five U.S. zoos have closed elephant exhibits in recent years amid public pressure following animal deaths or alleged mistreatment. A small animal sanctuary in Georgia surrendered its elephants earlier this year, partly because of space and cost concerns.

But the Detroit Zoo "is the first to make a purely voluntary decision of this nature," said Wayne Pacelle, chief executive officer of the Humane Society of the United States.

"This is precedent-setting," Pacelle said. "It will reverberate throughout the zoo community and, by extension, be an indictment of what goes on in circuses where elephants are chained 22 hours a day."

Wanda and Winky might go to the Elephant Sanctuary in Tennessee, joining 11 elephants that roam 522 acres. The sanctuary plans to expand to 2,700 acres of fenced land by year's end. Or they might go to the Performing Animal Welfare Society preserve in California.

Kagan said he believes the zoo adequately addresses the needs of its other animals, although future research might prove otherwise.

Elephants "are the only animals at the zoo for which there is a great disparity between what they need and what we can provide," he said. "In the future, there may very well be more species that we'll look back and say, "We just didn't understand."'

Detroit Zoo Sends Its Elephants Packing. Should Others Follow Suit?

By Richard Farinato

When you go to a zoo and follow the signs to the elephant exhibit, what you typically find is a barren and dusty dirt yard surrounded by a fence or moat. There may be artificial rocks or a dead tree trunk in the enclosure; there may even be a huge tire or an enormous ball. There will probably be some sort of pool. In their personal deserts, the elephants likely will be swaying back and forth, or standing quietly in one spot. They will look bored and numb. Some visitors will comment about the animals' lethargy. Others will yell and bang on the exhibit to get them to "do something."

The harsh juxtaposition between this artificial captive setting and an elephant's real life in the wild is beginning to capture the public's imagination. It has even captured the attention of at least one zoo manager.

In mid-May, the Detroit Zoo made a startling announcement: It was going end its 81-year history of exhibiting elephants. Director Ron Kagan decided to retire the zoo's two elephants, Winky and Wanda, because of animal welfare concerns; Wanda had developed chronic arthritis in her front legs, while Winky was struggling with foot problems, likely from the unnatural habit of sleeping while standing. Kagan plans to send the two Asian elephants to an as-yet-undetermined location some time this year.

Meanwhile, the San Francisco Zoo announced on May 6 that it was relocating its remaining two elephants, an Asian and an African, after the public loudly complained about the deaths of two former performing elephants who had taken up residence in the zoo's 1950s-era facilities.

These two elephant relocations happened for different reasons—Kagan is credited for being the first zoo director to voluntarily give up his elephants on humane grounds, while the public forced the Bay Area relinquishment—but they both have an underlying theme. After more than 200 years of keeping elephants in unnatural environments, people have begun to realize that zoos and other captive settings can not adequately provide the conditions that meet an elephant's physical and behavioral needs.

Captive elephants, on average, live shorter lives and suffer from debilitating foot conditions, tuberculosis, arthritis, and other medical conditions and ailments. They live in unnaturally cramped conditions, are forced to limit their complex social lives, and are regularly subjected to abusive training methods and handling.

For these reasons, and more, The Humane Society of the United States is asking zoos to completely rethink the way they exhibit elephants. Our idea will take coordination, cooperation and maybe a little seed cash. But the results could radically improve the lives of hundreds of elephants currently held in captivity.