Spate of premature elephant deaths prompts INTERNATIONAL watchdog group to call for closure of Toronto Zoo elephant exhibit

San Rafael, Calif. (December 2, 2009) - The fourth elephant death in less than four years - and the third since September 2008 - has placed the Toronto Zoo at the forefront of a zoo industry plagued by elephant tragedies and premature deaths, the international zoo watchdog group In Defense of Animals (IDA) said today. IDA is calling on the City of Toronto to close the zoo’s elephant exhibit and send its three surviving elephants to an elephant sanctuary.

"The Toronto Zoo lacks the space and natural conditions necessary to the health and well-being of African elephants," said Catherine Doyle, IDA Campaign Director. "The city's cold climate, plus the cramped and unnatural zoo environment, has resulted in an elephant death toll that continues to mount."

Tara, age 41, died after collapsing overnight while the zoo was closed. Just five months earlier, Tessa, age 40, died after being knocked over by another elephant while the pachyderms were rushing toward food in their tiny zoo exhibit. In September 2008, Tequila died suddenly at age 38. And in June 2006, Patsy, age 40, was euthanized after suffering from severe arthritis.

A 2008 study in the prestigious journal Science, co-authored by Georgia Mason of the University of Guelph Animal Sciences Department, found that, on average, elephants are dying in zoos at far younger ages than elephants in relatively protected wild and semi-wild populations. Elephants have a natural lifespan of 60-70 years, yet almost two-thirds of the African elephants who died in Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA) accredited zoos since 2000 did not live to age 40.

According to IDA, elephants living in cramped and unnatural zoo displays suffer from a range of health problems, including obesity, arthritis, foot disease, reproductive problems, and abnormal behaviors such as aggression and repetitive swaying and rocking. Cold weather compounds the problem, as elephants are forced indoors into tiny cages for the majority of long, freezing winters, greatly restricting movement necessary to good health.

For more information, please visit helpelephants.com.

Contacts:
Catherine Doyle, 323-301-5370
Suzanne Roy, 919-697-9389