Edmonton City Council: Send Lucy to a Sanctuary!
Edmonton City Council: Send Lucy to a Sanctuary!
The Issue
This petition is for Lucy the Elephant at the Edmonton City Zoo. It asks Edmonton Mayor Don Iveson and Edmonton City Council to allow a team of medical experts to examine Lucy to determine her true medical state. Hopefully the results of this examination will finally encourage Edmonton City and Zoo to release Lucy into a Sanctuary, where she can live out the rest of her days in happiness with a community of elephants. For Lucy's story and more information please read the details provided below.
Lucy the Elephant was captured in Sri Lanka as a two-year-old calf and was shipped to Edmonton where she has lived since 1977; she is currently believed to be 38 years old. Her present living conditions are wildly inappropriate for her. Her outdoor living space is a mere 0.5 acres (0.2 hectares), with a mainly barren and packed down earth floor for her walking space. Her outdoor surroundings consist of one rock to rub against, a small sand pile, absolutely no water pool nor trees and an insufficient opportunity for natural mental stimulation. The climate in which she is forced to live, often reaches severely cold temperatures (which can plummet far below -30°C). Due to the length of winter and cold temperatures in Alberta, Lucy is often kept indoors throughout the freezing winter climate, which is more than often, over six months of the year. This indoor living space is 200,000 times smaller than the outdoor space, with flat floors, a glass window(for the audience) and concrete walls. Her living spaces are far too small for an animal of her size and the temperatures in which she lives can fall far below Sri Lanka’s temperatures, which range from 16°C to 32°C, an area that would otherwise be Lucy’s home.
Worst of all, Lucy lives in solitary confinement. She has been alone for most of her life. There was an 18-year period in which an African elephant named Samantha lived with her; however, Samantha was moved to another zoo in 2007. Lucy's solitude has continued ever since. The zoo claims that Lucy's social needs are met through her interaction with her keepers. However, these keepers only occasionally take Lucy for brief walks around the zoo, later leaving her alone for much of the day. Lucy then continues to be alone, when her keepers leave for home at the end of the day, leaving Lucy in solitude and an anxious state. As stated in the document written by veterinarian Debi Zimmerman, “it should be noted that at 7:00pm, the end of the last keeper’s shift, Lucy is left alone in her stark surroundings. Supervisor, Dean Treichel, said that Lucy demonstrates 'anticipatory behavior while she waits for her herd (keepers) to show up'. The constant companionship of other elephants offered by sanctuaries, would spare Lucy the anxiety she experiences when her “herd” abandons her every evening, and reassembles every morning.” Despite the zoos claims that Lucy receives adequate social relations from her keepers, and despite however earnestly they may love her, I do not believe that human interactions, in any way, replicates or is a suitable surrogate for the needs that would otherwise be met if she lived amongst other elephants.
Apart from these unsuitable – which is an understatement – living conditions Lucy has suffered through various health problems, on and off, for over 20 years. She has chronic arthritis, respiratory problems, colic, foot infections, obesity problems and stereotypical stress behaviours. She often spends time engaging in stress behaviours such as rocking and stepping back and forth. In 2006, Zoocheck Canada contracted Winnie Kiiru, a Kenyan elephant biologist, to conduct an inspection. After observing Lucy’s behavior Ms. Kiiru reported, “’Lucy walked out of the barn and took a position just outside the door. She started rocking back and forth making one step forward and then rocking back and forth on the spot. She repeated this for about 10 minutes... There were no keepers in sight and numerous attempts to find them were fruitless.’” In the same document it is stated that “Zoo veterinarian, and elephant expert, Dr. Mel Richardson, described this stereotypic rocking behavior as 'checking out, going to a happier place in her mind.’”
The zoo claims that Lucy has a breathing problem where she does not breathe through her nose but her mouth. It was felt that this breathing problem was an upper respiratory condition, but “the Zoo now contends that the primary cause of these respiratory issues is the impacted molar which they believe is impinging on Lucy’s sinus cavity.” The Zoo does not appear to have given any consideration to Tuberculosis. Though tuberculosis would likely prevent her from being transferred to a sanctuary, adequate testing should still be provided to determine her true state. This thorough medical attention continues to be denied to Lucy by Edmonton Zoo and City Council.
Despite protests, attempted lawful actions, famous individual involvement and even offers to provide free care and transport from TV show host Bob Barker and organizations such as PETA and Zoocheck as well as the PAWS Sanctuary in California and The Elephant Sanctuary in Tennessee, Edmonton refuses to release Lucy. They claim that her health conditions prevents Lucy from being transported, and that only harm will come to her if she is moved. However, they refuse third party expert examinations. Their only exception is Dr. James Oosterhuis. Dr. Oosterhuis was the only one of 11 experts to refuse Maggie the African Elephant’s transport from the Alaskan Zoo to PAWS Sanctuary (where she now lives a happy life). He had also supported the two-day beating of Dunda, another African elephant at the San Diego Wild Animal Park in 1988, which involved chaining Dunda’s legs, bringer her down to the ground and beating her with axe handles across the head. Dr. Oosterhuis stated to the Los Angeles Times, “’It's important to remember that the elephant skull is 6 inches thick at this point and the skin is an inch thick. There is limited blood flow and nerve presence here, which means the area is slow to heal. In my view, it is an appropriate and non-harmful place in which to administer required discipline.’” Dr. Oosterhuis had also been on record in events involving animal abuse as well as numerous other seriously questionable diagnoses of zoo and circus animals.
It would be appropriate for a team of experts to be permitted to examine Lucy, however this suggestion or any implication of moving Lucy continues to be rejected by the Edmonton City Council and the Zoo Directory.
On October 20, 2013, the Toronto Zoo had successfully transferred it’s formally residing African elephants – Iringa, Toka and Thika – to PAWS Sanctuary, and attempted to persuade the Edmonton Valley Zoo to do the same. This was viewed as an intrusion by Edmonton into its affairs and once again rejected.
Devastatingly, on December 3, 2013 Limba, a 50-year-old Asian elephant, at the Bowmanville Zoo was euthanized. Two weeks prior to her death, Limba was place in the Christmas parade despite her health problems. Like Lucy, Limba lived a solitary life. I do not wish for Lucy’s life to end the same way as Limba’s. It is a horrible tragedy when any animal dies, but it is even worse when they do not have the chance to live a fulfilling life.
It is imperative that we do not tolerate this neglect, abuse, confinement, and downright disregard for any animal. Lucy does not deserve to be treated so poorly. She deserves to know freedom, and happiness and she deserves the opportunity to live amongst other elephants. I would like you to sign this petition to help Lucy get a proper medical examination by a team of experts, who are approved by both the Edmonton Zoo and Zoocheck Canada. Hopefully such an examination will result in her release to a wonderful sanctuary where Lucy will finally be able to live the life she so rightfully deserves. Please help Lucy receive her seriously overdue freedom and happiness.
Should you like to read the report written by Veterinarian Debi Zimmerman please visit:
http://www.zoocheck.com/reportPDFs/ZimLucyReportJune2009.pdf
To see the 1988 Los Angeles Times Article about the Dunda the Elephant case please visit:
http://articles.latimes.com/1988-07-30/local/me-6519_1_wild-animal-park
In addition I have already contacted well-known Elephant expert Dr. Dame Daphne Sheldrick D.B.E M.B.S from the David Sheldrick Wildlife Trust situated in Kenya and asked for her opinion regarding Lucy's living conditions (climate and enclosure) as well as her opinion regarding solitary elephants. She responded with an appeal to Edmonton Zoo and City Council as follows:
“An Appeal to the Edmonton Zoo and the City Council concerning the elephant called Lucy
I head The David Sheldrick Wildlife Trust in Kenya, and have worked with elephants, both wild and orphaned, for 50 years of my life.
One of our conservation initiatives is the rescue, hand-rearing and ultimate rehabilitation back to wild status of orphaned African Elephant calves. To date we have hand-reared over 170 elephants, orphans of poaching, human wildlife conflict, droughts, floods and wells dug in seasonal river beds for domestic stock by pastoral tribes. Two of our orphans were newborn upon arrival, still shrouded in fetal membranes, and are now leading perfectly normal elephant lives in Tsavo National Park as are over 70 other Ex Orphans reared through our Nairobi Nursery. Once stabilized and healed both psychologically and physically, they are transferred to our two Rehabilitation facilities in the Tsavo National Park, which is the country’s largest protected area the size of Michigan State and home to its largest single wild population of elephants numbering some 12,000. Some of these Ex orphans are now mothers of their own calves fathered by wild Bulls, and bring their babies back to share with the humans that replaced their lost mother and elephant herd in infancy and who steered them into adulthood from the Rehabilitation Centres. The orphans love their human family, having always only been handled only with love and care and will recognize those individuals for life, since elephants never forget, which happens to be true. You can learn more about our work with the elephants from our website www.sheldrickwildlifetrust.org Our orphaned elephants featured, along with the Orangutans of Borneo on the IMAX film Born to be Wild, Premiered recently in your country and have been portrayed on Television screens throughout the world. Through The Keepers’ Diaries, which chronicle the lives of all the elephants in our care on a daily basis, the orphans have taught the world a lot about their species, and forced the Scientific community to remove the anthropomorphic block that has inhibited understanding of others that share our earthly home.
We have supporters all over the world, and through some from Canada I have learned of the Asian Elephant named Lucy, captured in Sri Lanka as a 2 year old calf and shipped to Edmonton Zoo where she has lived a solitary life in cramped quarters and under extreme cold conditions for much of the year. As such she is both unhealthy and unhappy.
In this 21st Century, I would appeal to the Edmonton Zoo authorities and the City Council to do what is best for Lucy by arranging for her to retire at the Elephant Sanctuary in Tennessee where she would have more space, a more favourable climate, and the companionship of other elephants. Elephants are highly social and extremely intelligent animals who are “human” in terms of emotion with the same sense of family as ourselves and the same sense of death. They are deserving of compassionate care, and understanding, especially in this day and age and especially from the First World countries of the civilized world. There is nothing educational or pleasurable in seeing a miserable captive living under poor conditions, and ordinary people throughout the world are beginning to understand this.
Respectfully,
Dr. Dame Daphne Sheldrick DBE MBE MBS DVMS.
Chairperson David Sheldrick Wildlife Trust ”
Dr. Sheldrick is a "recognized International authority on the rearing of wild creatures" and with a lifetime of involvement with wildlife Dr. Sheldrick has extensive and undeniable knowledge regarding elephants, their habitat and their social needs. If you wish to read about Dr. Dame Daphne Sheldrick's work you may visit:
http://www.sheldrickwildlifetrust.org/html/about_daphne_sheldrick.html
The Issue
This petition is for Lucy the Elephant at the Edmonton City Zoo. It asks Edmonton Mayor Don Iveson and Edmonton City Council to allow a team of medical experts to examine Lucy to determine her true medical state. Hopefully the results of this examination will finally encourage Edmonton City and Zoo to release Lucy into a Sanctuary, where she can live out the rest of her days in happiness with a community of elephants. For Lucy's story and more information please read the details provided below.
Lucy the Elephant was captured in Sri Lanka as a two-year-old calf and was shipped to Edmonton where she has lived since 1977; she is currently believed to be 38 years old. Her present living conditions are wildly inappropriate for her. Her outdoor living space is a mere 0.5 acres (0.2 hectares), with a mainly barren and packed down earth floor for her walking space. Her outdoor surroundings consist of one rock to rub against, a small sand pile, absolutely no water pool nor trees and an insufficient opportunity for natural mental stimulation. The climate in which she is forced to live, often reaches severely cold temperatures (which can plummet far below -30°C). Due to the length of winter and cold temperatures in Alberta, Lucy is often kept indoors throughout the freezing winter climate, which is more than often, over six months of the year. This indoor living space is 200,000 times smaller than the outdoor space, with flat floors, a glass window(for the audience) and concrete walls. Her living spaces are far too small for an animal of her size and the temperatures in which she lives can fall far below Sri Lanka’s temperatures, which range from 16°C to 32°C, an area that would otherwise be Lucy’s home.
Worst of all, Lucy lives in solitary confinement. She has been alone for most of her life. There was an 18-year period in which an African elephant named Samantha lived with her; however, Samantha was moved to another zoo in 2007. Lucy's solitude has continued ever since. The zoo claims that Lucy's social needs are met through her interaction with her keepers. However, these keepers only occasionally take Lucy for brief walks around the zoo, later leaving her alone for much of the day. Lucy then continues to be alone, when her keepers leave for home at the end of the day, leaving Lucy in solitude and an anxious state. As stated in the document written by veterinarian Debi Zimmerman, “it should be noted that at 7:00pm, the end of the last keeper’s shift, Lucy is left alone in her stark surroundings. Supervisor, Dean Treichel, said that Lucy demonstrates 'anticipatory behavior while she waits for her herd (keepers) to show up'. The constant companionship of other elephants offered by sanctuaries, would spare Lucy the anxiety she experiences when her “herd” abandons her every evening, and reassembles every morning.” Despite the zoos claims that Lucy receives adequate social relations from her keepers, and despite however earnestly they may love her, I do not believe that human interactions, in any way, replicates or is a suitable surrogate for the needs that would otherwise be met if she lived amongst other elephants.
Apart from these unsuitable – which is an understatement – living conditions Lucy has suffered through various health problems, on and off, for over 20 years. She has chronic arthritis, respiratory problems, colic, foot infections, obesity problems and stereotypical stress behaviours. She often spends time engaging in stress behaviours such as rocking and stepping back and forth. In 2006, Zoocheck Canada contracted Winnie Kiiru, a Kenyan elephant biologist, to conduct an inspection. After observing Lucy’s behavior Ms. Kiiru reported, “’Lucy walked out of the barn and took a position just outside the door. She started rocking back and forth making one step forward and then rocking back and forth on the spot. She repeated this for about 10 minutes... There were no keepers in sight and numerous attempts to find them were fruitless.’” In the same document it is stated that “Zoo veterinarian, and elephant expert, Dr. Mel Richardson, described this stereotypic rocking behavior as 'checking out, going to a happier place in her mind.’”
The zoo claims that Lucy has a breathing problem where she does not breathe through her nose but her mouth. It was felt that this breathing problem was an upper respiratory condition, but “the Zoo now contends that the primary cause of these respiratory issues is the impacted molar which they believe is impinging on Lucy’s sinus cavity.” The Zoo does not appear to have given any consideration to Tuberculosis. Though tuberculosis would likely prevent her from being transferred to a sanctuary, adequate testing should still be provided to determine her true state. This thorough medical attention continues to be denied to Lucy by Edmonton Zoo and City Council.
Despite protests, attempted lawful actions, famous individual involvement and even offers to provide free care and transport from TV show host Bob Barker and organizations such as PETA and Zoocheck as well as the PAWS Sanctuary in California and The Elephant Sanctuary in Tennessee, Edmonton refuses to release Lucy. They claim that her health conditions prevents Lucy from being transported, and that only harm will come to her if she is moved. However, they refuse third party expert examinations. Their only exception is Dr. James Oosterhuis. Dr. Oosterhuis was the only one of 11 experts to refuse Maggie the African Elephant’s transport from the Alaskan Zoo to PAWS Sanctuary (where she now lives a happy life). He had also supported the two-day beating of Dunda, another African elephant at the San Diego Wild Animal Park in 1988, which involved chaining Dunda’s legs, bringer her down to the ground and beating her with axe handles across the head. Dr. Oosterhuis stated to the Los Angeles Times, “’It's important to remember that the elephant skull is 6 inches thick at this point and the skin is an inch thick. There is limited blood flow and nerve presence here, which means the area is slow to heal. In my view, it is an appropriate and non-harmful place in which to administer required discipline.’” Dr. Oosterhuis had also been on record in events involving animal abuse as well as numerous other seriously questionable diagnoses of zoo and circus animals.
It would be appropriate for a team of experts to be permitted to examine Lucy, however this suggestion or any implication of moving Lucy continues to be rejected by the Edmonton City Council and the Zoo Directory.
On October 20, 2013, the Toronto Zoo had successfully transferred it’s formally residing African elephants – Iringa, Toka and Thika – to PAWS Sanctuary, and attempted to persuade the Edmonton Valley Zoo to do the same. This was viewed as an intrusion by Edmonton into its affairs and once again rejected.
Devastatingly, on December 3, 2013 Limba, a 50-year-old Asian elephant, at the Bowmanville Zoo was euthanized. Two weeks prior to her death, Limba was place in the Christmas parade despite her health problems. Like Lucy, Limba lived a solitary life. I do not wish for Lucy’s life to end the same way as Limba’s. It is a horrible tragedy when any animal dies, but it is even worse when they do not have the chance to live a fulfilling life.
It is imperative that we do not tolerate this neglect, abuse, confinement, and downright disregard for any animal. Lucy does not deserve to be treated so poorly. She deserves to know freedom, and happiness and she deserves the opportunity to live amongst other elephants. I would like you to sign this petition to help Lucy get a proper medical examination by a team of experts, who are approved by both the Edmonton Zoo and Zoocheck Canada. Hopefully such an examination will result in her release to a wonderful sanctuary where Lucy will finally be able to live the life she so rightfully deserves. Please help Lucy receive her seriously overdue freedom and happiness.
Should you like to read the report written by Veterinarian Debi Zimmerman please visit:
http://www.zoocheck.com/reportPDFs/ZimLucyReportJune2009.pdf
To see the 1988 Los Angeles Times Article about the Dunda the Elephant case please visit:
http://articles.latimes.com/1988-07-30/local/me-6519_1_wild-animal-park
In addition I have already contacted well-known Elephant expert Dr. Dame Daphne Sheldrick D.B.E M.B.S from the David Sheldrick Wildlife Trust situated in Kenya and asked for her opinion regarding Lucy's living conditions (climate and enclosure) as well as her opinion regarding solitary elephants. She responded with an appeal to Edmonton Zoo and City Council as follows:
“An Appeal to the Edmonton Zoo and the City Council concerning the elephant called Lucy
I head The David Sheldrick Wildlife Trust in Kenya, and have worked with elephants, both wild and orphaned, for 50 years of my life.
One of our conservation initiatives is the rescue, hand-rearing and ultimate rehabilitation back to wild status of orphaned African Elephant calves. To date we have hand-reared over 170 elephants, orphans of poaching, human wildlife conflict, droughts, floods and wells dug in seasonal river beds for domestic stock by pastoral tribes. Two of our orphans were newborn upon arrival, still shrouded in fetal membranes, and are now leading perfectly normal elephant lives in Tsavo National Park as are over 70 other Ex Orphans reared through our Nairobi Nursery. Once stabilized and healed both psychologically and physically, they are transferred to our two Rehabilitation facilities in the Tsavo National Park, which is the country’s largest protected area the size of Michigan State and home to its largest single wild population of elephants numbering some 12,000. Some of these Ex orphans are now mothers of their own calves fathered by wild Bulls, and bring their babies back to share with the humans that replaced their lost mother and elephant herd in infancy and who steered them into adulthood from the Rehabilitation Centres. The orphans love their human family, having always only been handled only with love and care and will recognize those individuals for life, since elephants never forget, which happens to be true. You can learn more about our work with the elephants from our website www.sheldrickwildlifetrust.org Our orphaned elephants featured, along with the Orangutans of Borneo on the IMAX film Born to be Wild, Premiered recently in your country and have been portrayed on Television screens throughout the world. Through The Keepers’ Diaries, which chronicle the lives of all the elephants in our care on a daily basis, the orphans have taught the world a lot about their species, and forced the Scientific community to remove the anthropomorphic block that has inhibited understanding of others that share our earthly home.
We have supporters all over the world, and through some from Canada I have learned of the Asian Elephant named Lucy, captured in Sri Lanka as a 2 year old calf and shipped to Edmonton Zoo where she has lived a solitary life in cramped quarters and under extreme cold conditions for much of the year. As such she is both unhealthy and unhappy.
In this 21st Century, I would appeal to the Edmonton Zoo authorities and the City Council to do what is best for Lucy by arranging for her to retire at the Elephant Sanctuary in Tennessee where she would have more space, a more favourable climate, and the companionship of other elephants. Elephants are highly social and extremely intelligent animals who are “human” in terms of emotion with the same sense of family as ourselves and the same sense of death. They are deserving of compassionate care, and understanding, especially in this day and age and especially from the First World countries of the civilized world. There is nothing educational or pleasurable in seeing a miserable captive living under poor conditions, and ordinary people throughout the world are beginning to understand this.
Respectfully,
Dr. Dame Daphne Sheldrick DBE MBE MBS DVMS.
Chairperson David Sheldrick Wildlife Trust ”
Dr. Sheldrick is a "recognized International authority on the rearing of wild creatures" and with a lifetime of involvement with wildlife Dr. Sheldrick has extensive and undeniable knowledge regarding elephants, their habitat and their social needs. If you wish to read about Dr. Dame Daphne Sheldrick's work you may visit:
http://www.sheldrickwildlifetrust.org/html/about_daphne_sheldrick.html
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Petition created on January 25, 2014