About half of AZA zoos with elephants currently employ a training method in which keepers use the bullhook, a steel-tipped weapon resembling a fireplace poker, to control elephants through the threat of painful punishment. Under the new policy, zoos will be required to use the “protected contact” method, which means keeper and elephant are separated by a protective barrier and only positive reinforcement training is utilized.

“In Defense of Animals has long pushed zoos to end the archaic, circus-style training that has been inhumane for elephants and lethal for keepers,” said IDA Elephant Campaign Director Catherine Doyle. “We are pleased that elephants soon will be better protected from abusive handling in zoos.”

The new policy allows for exceptions, including medical procedures and testing, though zoos using protected contact have successfully trained elephants for veterinary treatment, blood tests and routine care. Zoos also will be required to document all instances of aggression by elephants and to report annually on all injuries or fatalities related to elephants (no such record-keeping now exists).

Since 1990, 31 keepers have been injured or killed by elephants in zoos. The most recent incident took place in January, when an elephant killed a keeper at the Knoxville Zoo. Another keeper was gravely injured last year at the Toledo Zoo. IDA filed complaints with the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) after each incident, calling for an end to unsafe training practices in zoos. No keepers have died in zoos that use “protected contact” management.

The AZA directive will not entirely resolve the problems suffered by elephants in zoos. “The new policy is a significant step forward,” said Doyle, “but many elephants in zoos are still held in inadequate and unnatural displays that shorten their lives by decades. So there is still much work to be done.”

For more information, please visit www.HelpElephants.com.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Catherine Doyle, 323-301-5730, Catherine@idausa.org

San Rafael, Calif. (November 4, 2010) – In Defense of Animals (IDA), an international animal protection organization, is urging the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) to take action against the Cole Brothers Circus for its seeming role in an elaborate scheme to circumvent federal animal welfare laws by helping Florida-based animal handler Lance Ramos Kollman exhibit his animals even though his license was revoked by the agency.

Since losing his license in 2009 for horrific violations of the Animal Welfare Act (AWA), including animal deaths, a cast of shady characters has been playing a complicated shell game and exploiting legal loopholes to keep Kollman illegally in business. Throughout its 2010 tour, the Cole Brothers Circus has been showing a group of nine big cats that belonged to Kollman but were exhibited (and sometimes purportedly owned) by a procession of unlicensed and inexperienced handlers.

In July, the USDA ordered the Circus to stop using unlicensed exhibitors to show the tiger act. And in September the agency began an action to revoke the licenses of those exhibitors, claiming they have been circumventing the AWA by allowing Kollman to exhibit his animals illegally, including at the Cole Brothers Circus.

Though the circus does not have its own USDA license, the agency has treated it as a “de facto” exhibitor, citing the Circus in July for several violations, all arising out of the participation of the unlicensed big cat act.

In a letter to the USDA, IDA urged the agency to pursue the Cole Brothers Circus for violating the AWA, which could result in fines or an order barring the circus from using animal acts. IDA also encouraged the USDA to consult with the U.S. Attorney, suggesting that the Circus appeared to have participated in attempting to circumvent federal law.

“The USDA should be pursuing all possible legal actions against the Cole Brothers Circus,” said Catherine Doyle, IDA elephant campaign director. “The circus has been putting children, families and the animals at risk by employing unlicensed and inexperienced handlers.”

The Cole Brothers Circus continues to use Kollman’s tigers under yet another handler, and Kollman has been seen working with the circus during its current Florida run, which continues through November. The Circus is currently in Boca Raton, moving on to Sarasota next week.

Documentation is available upon request. For more information, visit www.HelpElephants.com.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact:

Catherine Doyle, 323-301-5730, zoos@idausa.org

Deborah Robinson, 860-836-7761, circuses@idausa.org

“Scientific research shows that inter-zoo transfers contribute to the premature deaths of elephants, so unnecessary moves should be avoided at all costs,” said IDA Elephant Campaign Director Catherine Doyle. “If the San Diego Zoo cannot keep Tina and Jewel, the elephants should be sent to a natural-habitat sanctuary where they would be assured a permanent home and the stability that elephants need to thrive. Unlike a sanctuary, there is no guarantee that the L.A. Zoo will not move these elephants yet again.”

IDA worked for more than two years to free Tina and Jewel from a life-threatening situation in the circus, filing complaints with the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) for multiple violations of the Animal Welfare Act and pressing for confiscation of the ailing elephants. The USDA and the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service removed the elephants and sent them to the zoo in August 2009.

The PAWS Sanctuary in San Andreas, California, had long offered to take Tina and Jewel and guarantee them a lifetime home. IDA expected that if the elephants were to be moved again, it would be to PAWS, which provides expert rehabilitation for abused elephants.

“IDA is appalled that the San Diego Zoo is treating these elephants like pieces of furniture, shipping them from one zoo to another at the zoos’ convenience,” said Doyle. “Unfortunately, this is typical for zoos and a perfect example of how they are failing elephants.”

The San Diego Zoo has been under fire before for disposing of elephants to suit its convenience. In 2003, seven elephants were taken from the wilds of Swaziland and sent to the Safari Park for breeding, despite offers to move the elephants to reserves elsewhere in Africa. Prior to the move, three long-time resident elephants were shipped to Chicago’s Lincoln Park Zoo, despite concerns about their welfare in such a cold climate. All three elephants died within two years.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact: Catherine Doyle, 323-301-5730, zoos@idausa.org

San Rafael, Calif. – Following the horrific attack that left an elephant keeper seriously injured, In Defense of Animals (IDA) is calling on the Toledo Zoo to end its use of archaic circus-style training that puts keepers at high risk of injury and death and is inhumane for the elephants. The African elephant in the attack has been identified as seven-year-old Louie.

“The Toledo Zoo could have prevented this tragic incident by employing a widely-used elephant management system that safeguards keepers and trains elephants more humanely,” said Catherine Doyle, IDA Elephant Campaign Director. “There is absolutely no excuse for the zoo to continue using unsafe and inhumane handling practices that put keepers at further risk of injury and death. The zoo should immediately change its handling methods for all three elephants.”

About half of zoos use the “protected contact” elephant management system, which relies on positive-reinforcement training and cooperation. A protective barrier separates keepers and elephants, removing the risk of bodily harm while still allowing for necessary care and veterinary treatment. IDA is urging the Toledo Zoo to adopt the protected contact system.

The Toledo Zoo uses harsh circus-style training methods that “break” young elephants and force them to submit to the keepers’ complete control. Obedience is assured with the bullhook, a device resembling a fireplace poker that is used to prod, hook, jab and strike the elephants. Even when not in use, the bullhook is a constant, intimidating threat.

“There is evidence that captive elephants are prone to deliberately attack their trainers and others associated with their care,” said zoological consultant Peter Stroud. “We might conclude that this tendency is related to the unnatural situation in which captive elephants are kept and the suppression of their natural behavior.”

Between 1990 and 2000, there were at least 21 elephant-related keeper deaths and injuries in U.S. zoos (injuries are believed to be seriously underreported). Since 2000, after more zoos adopted “protected contact” training, there have been eight incidents, a reduction of more than 60 percent.

Many zoos have transitioned to the positive-reinforcement based training system following keeper injuries and deaths, including the San Diego Wild Animal Park, Oakland Zoo, San Antonio Zoo and the Miami Zoo.

For more information, please visit www.HelpElephants.com.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
July 2, 2010

Contact: Catherine Doyle, 323-301-5730, zoos@idausa.org

Coal Valley, Illinois. (May 17, 2010) – In Defense of Animals (IDA) is urging the Rock Island County Forest Preserve Commission to table a Tuesday vote on an increase in ticket prices at the Niabi Zoo meant to help fund a $3 million elephant barn expansion, until it can fully investigate the health of ailing elephants Babe and Sophie. In a letter sent today, IDA asked the Commission to bring in an independent veterinarian to fully assess the elephants’ health and welfare.

“To keep Babe and Sophie at the Niabi Zoo would be disastrous, considering the serious health problems they suffer from living in a small and inadequate display,” said Catherine Doyle, IDA Elephant Campaign Director. “We urge the county to make a factual assessment of the serious health and welfare problems for elephants at the Niabi Zoo, even with an expanded barn. Only after the county fully understands the grave consequences of keeping Babe and Sophie should they consider a vote.”

Outgoing zoo director Tom Stalf has publicly recommended that the elephants be moved out of the zoo, based on health concerns. IDA calls his statements “unprecedented.” The two Asian elephants suffer foot disease, caused by prolonged confinement during the long winter months in a tiny barn, with little room for movement. One elephant likely suffers arthritis. Elephants in the wild, who walk tens of miles each day, do not suffer and die prematurely from foot disease or arthritis.

“Foot disease is an extremely painful and often lethal ailment that kills elephants in zoos prematurely,” said IDA president Dr. Elliot Katz, a veterinarian. “To make Babe and Sophie spend another winter in a tiny barn at the Niabi Zoo would be cruel. They must be immediately removed from their inadequate enclosure and transferred to a sanctuary where they can walk on grass and soft soil year-round and begin to heal.”

IDA says the commission should send the elephants to a natural-habitat sanctuary, where they would live in an environment at least 100 times larger than the space the elephants now share. These facilities specialize in caring for elephants like Sophie and Babe, who spent most of their lives with the circus before coming to the Niabi Zoo.

Eighteen Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA) accredited zoos have closed or plan to close their elephant exhibits, including San Francisco, Los Angeles, Philadelphia and Detroit.

For more information please visit www.HelpElephants.com. A copy of IDA’s letter is available upon request.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact: Catherine Doyle, 323-301-5730, zoos@idausa.org

“It is grossly irresponsible for the St. Louis Zoo to continue breeding elephants, knowing that any infant born there faces a high risk of disease and death,” said Catherine Doyle, IDA campaign director. “IDA is calling on the USDA to stop the reckless breeding of elephants in herpes-affected zoos by adopting a policy that protects calves from unnecessary suffering and horrific deaths.”

Two calves at the St. Louis Zoo were stricken with the virus in 2009. Jade was treated and survived, and Maliha was asymptomatic but tested positive. In December Jade became the first EEHV survivor known to suffer a relapse. Since 1998, nine elephants born in Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA) accredited zoos have been stricken with EEHV, with Jade the only survivor.

Little is known about EEHV, though the overwhelming evidence indicates it primarily strikes young Asian elephants in captivity, usually causing death through massive internal hemorrhaging. Almost 40 percent of Asian elephants born in AZA-accredited zoos in the last 12 years have succumbed to the disease.

In addition to its complaint regarding the St. Louis Zoo, IDA filed complaints against three other herpes-affected zoos that are actively breeding elephants:

-  The Houston Zoo, long considered a “hot spot” for EEHV, has two pregnant elephants. Four of the zoo’s five elephants have tested positive for the virus, including the pregnant females. Six calves born at the zoo died from the virus.
-    The Woodland Park Zoo in Seattle lost a young elephant, Hansa, to the virus in 2007, and holds an African elephant who tested positive. Yet the zoo recently artificially inseminated Hansa’s mother, Chai.
-    The Oklahoma City Zoo, which sent two females to the Tulsa Zoo for breeding, is attempting to impregnate the elephant Chendra, an EEHV survivor. A second elephant, Asha, who was likely exposed to the virus, is already pregnant.

“Federal animal welfare law requires animal exhibitors to use appropriate methods to prevent and control disease. The only sure way to prevent new EEHV cases is to stop breeding elephants in herpes-affected zoos,” said Dr. Elliot Katz, IDA president and a veterinarian. “The USDA must move swiftly to insure that zoos do not expose more innocent calves to this devastating disease.”

To read IDA’s complaint against the St. Louis Zoo, please go to:  http://www.helpelephants.com/StLouisZoobreedingcomplaint.pdf

For more information, visit www.HelpElephants.com.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
March 17, 2010

Contact: Catherine Doyle, zoos@idausa.org, 323-301-5730

“It is grossly irresponsible for the Woodland Park Zoo to continue breeding elephants, knowing that any infant born there faces a high risk of disease and death,” said Catherine Doyle, IDA campaign director. “IDA is calling on the USDA to stop the reckless breeding of elephants in herpes-affected zoos by adopting a policy that protects calves from unnecessary suffering and horrific deaths.”

In 2007, seven-year-old Hansa died from a previously unknown variant of the herpes virus. The zoo subsequently made public the fact that the strain of EEHV that killed her is present in the African elephant, Watoto. Following Hansa’s death, a leading EEHV expert stated that because Hansa never left the zoo since birth, the virus likely was passed from her mother, Chai, or one of the other elephants.

Little is known about EEHV, though the overwhelming evidence indicates it primarily strikes young Asian elephants in captivity, usually causing death through massive internal hemorrhaging. Almost 40 percent of Asian elephants born in AZA-accredited zoos in the last 12 years have succumbed to the disease.

In addition to its complaint regarding the Woodland Park Zoo, IDA filed complaints against three other herpes-affected zoos that are actively breeding elephants:

-   The Houston Zoo, long considered a “hot spot” for EEHV, has two pregnant elephants. Four of the zoo’s five elephants have tested positive for the virus, including the pregnant females. Six calves born at the zoo died from the virus.
-    The St. Louis Zoo has two elephant calves who were stricken with the virus in 2009; one was asymptomatic and treated, the other required drastic veterinary treatment and recovered but experienced a relapse in December.
-    The Oklahoma City Zoo, which sent two females to the Tulsa Zoo for breeding, is attempting to impregnate the elephant Chendra, an EEHV survivor. A second elephant, Asha, who was likely exposed to the virus, is already pregnant.

“Federal animal welfare law requires animal exhibitors to use appropriate methods to prevent and control disease. The only sure way to prevent new EEHV cases is to stop breeding elephants in herpes-affected zoos,” said Dr. Elliot Katz, IDA president and a veterinarian. “The USDA must move swiftly to insure that zoos do not expose more innocent calves to this devastating disease.”

To read IDA’s complaint against the Woodland Park Zoo, please go to:  http://www.helpelephants.com/WoodlandParkZoobreedingcomplaint.pdf

For more information, visit www.HelpElephants.com.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
March 17, 2010

Contact: Catherine Doyle, zoos@idausa.org, 323-301-5730

“It is grossly irresponsible for the Oklahoma City Zoo to breed elephants, knowing that any infant born there faces a high risk of disease and death,” said Catherine Doyle, IDA campaign director. “IDA is calling on the USDA to stop the reckless breeding of elephants in herpes-affected zoos by adopting a policy that protects calves from unnecessary suffering and horrific deaths.”

Chandra and Asha came to Oklahoma City from the Dickerson Park Zoo, at which five elephants were infected with EEHV, including Chandra, the only survivor. Asha was likely exposed to the virus through Chandra or other elephants. Both elephants are being temporarily held at the Tulsa Zoo, which lost an elephant to EEHV in 1993.

Little is known about EEHV, though the overwhelming evidence indicates it primarily strikes young Asian elephants in captivity, usually causing death through massive internal hemorrhaging. Almost 40 percent of Asian elephants born in AZA-accredited zoos in the last 12 years have succumbed to the disease.

In addition to its complaint regarding the Oklahoma City Zoo, IDA filed complaints against three other herpes-affected zoos that are actively breeding elephants:

- The Houston Zoo, long considered a herpes “hot spot,” has two pregnant elephants. Four of the zoo’s five elephants have tested positive for the virus, including the pregnant females. Six calves born at the zoo died from the virus.

- The Woodland Park Zoo in Seattle lost a young elephant to the virus in 2007, and holds an African elephant who tested positive. Yet the zoo recently artificially inseminated Chai, the mother of the dead elephant.

- The St. Louis Zoo has two elephant calves who were stricken with the virus in 2009; one was asymptomatic and treated, the other required drastic veterinary treatment and recovered but experienced a relapse in December.

“Federal animal welfare law requires animal exhibitors to use appropriate methods to prevent and control disease. The only sure way to prevent new EEHV cases is to stop breeding elephants in herpes-affected zoos,” said Dr. Elliot Katz, IDA president and a veterinarian. “The USDA must move swiftly to insure that zoos do not expose more innocent calves to this devastating disease.”

To read IDA’s complaint against the Oklahoma City Zoo, please go to: http://www.helpelephants.com/OklahomaCityZoobreedingcomplaint.pdf

For more information, visit www.HelpElephants.com.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
March 17, 2010

Contact: Catherine Doyle, zoos@idausa.org, 323-301-5730

The zoo’s elephant exhibit can only hold two pachyderms, and although the zoo could try to acquire a second elephant, it probably would not be able to comply with elephant standards set by the Association of Zoos and Aquariums that require zoos have no fewer than three female elephants, the group says.

The animal group said that because sanctuaries have more space, elephants integrate easily into social groups and soon form lasting bonds with companions of their own choosing.

The two leading U.S. sanctuaries, The Elephant Sanctuary in Tennessee and PAWS in California, have set the standard for the care of captive elephants by providing spacious and complex environments that give elephants the space they need for movement, large social groups, and high-quality veterinary care, the animal group says.

Dr. Elliot Katz, the animal group’s president and a veterinarian, said, “At Maude’s age, if she stays in a zoo she’s likely to develop arthritis or other health complications. … Arthritis is a painful and potentially deadly condition for an elephant. A sanctuary provides the soft soil, space and exercise that elephants need to stay healthy.”

Read this entire article here.