Hi everyone, 

The season is coming to an end at African Lion Safari, it will officially close it's doors until next year tomorrow September 30th. I am hoping I will get a message next week from Trish Gerth, as she did say she would have time to talk with me once the season is over. I promise to let you know as soon as she does. 

One thing I forgot to mention last time I posted an update was that when I was at African Lion Safari I decided to watch the elephant show so that I knew exactly what they were doing. It didn't last more than 15/20 minutes, perhaps it was so short because it was near the end of the season and there were very few people. I have to say I was very disappointed. Not because the elephant was doing tricks or the trainer was riding it (I *was* still unhappy about this though). I was disappointed at the information being given to the public. The trainer talked about the challenges African elephants face today which is of course the ivory trade. She said that there are roughly 100 elephants killed each day for the ivory. I was glad they were talking about this, however there was no mention of the fact that ivory is legal in Canada. I would have thought that being a conservation center they would have mentioned this and said DON'T buy ivory seeing as it funds a main reason for the African elephant's declining population. They also never mentioned ANYTHING about challenges facing Asian elephants. While the ivory is certainly a reason for male Asian elephants being poached, habitat loss is one of the biggest causes of their declining numbers. Considering African Lion Safari houses Asian elephants, I found this bizarre they didn't talk about their particular species' threats. And of course there was no mention of tourism being a threat. 

In a follow up email from my brief meeting with Trish Gerth (which has yet to be replied to) I commended their mentioning of the issue of ivory. I was very pleased this was included. I did however request that future presentations include information on habitat loss and tourism, as an addition of my initial request to end the elephant rides. 

I wanted to let people know that if they want to stay informed, there is a person who runs an Instagram that is very *graphically* informative. While it is not easy to see, I think it is important to be informed. She has friends who keep her updated and she posts regularly about individual elephant's situations. I think her Instagram showcases exactly why this petition is so important, so that EVERYONE is aware of what is going on and makes informed decisions while they are in Asia.

If you would like to be informed and aware of the situation, her instagram is @jay_nicole_83 or copy and paste this link - 

https://www.instagram.com/jay_nicole_83/

We are now at almost 31,000 signatures which is so amazing, thank you!