In the News: Topeka Zoo Elephants Sunda (Asian Elephant) and Tembo (African Elephant) need support to
find a home in a Sanctuary
Elephants in captivity have a hard life. Not only are they forced to live in mostly
solitude but also in small spaces and unnatural surroundings. In nature, all female elephants – most captive
elephants are female due to their gentler nature – live in a matriarchal
herd. There they give birth to their
young and the multi-generational family offers community, support as older
siblings tend for the younger ones, and protection. The elephant herds roam over wide areas foraging
for food and water. A 20-mile walk from
their sleeping places to the next watering hole and pasture is not unheard
of. While in Amboseli
National Park , Kenya
Two elephants greeting each other
In captivity, these large and heavy animals mainly stand on
their feet often on hard cement surfaces and foot problems are the major cause
of elephant mortality. However, there
are solutions by releasing these magnificent animals to sanctuaries, where they
find community with other elephants and are able to walk, graze, and swim in a
more natural environment. I have visited
such a sanctuary here in California : PAWS Ark 2000 in San Andreas and have seen what a
difference this makes. Please read my
story on PAWS here.
There is another beautiful
elephant sanctuary in Tennessee Tennessee
If you want to help the Topeka Zoo elephants, please read the story below and if you find it in your
heart, please click and sign on the petition to give Sunda and Tembo a better
life.
Elephants Sunda and Tembo At Topeka
Please use the form at
the bottom of this page to send your message to Topeka
In July, IDA Elephant Campaign
Director Catherine Doyle visited the Topeka Zoo and was shocked to discover
that Asian elephant Sunda had gaping black holes in nails on two feet and that
she was frequently shifting her
weight from one foot to another, an indication of pain. IDA immediately filed a complaint
with the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), which inspected the facility on
August 28 and issued a citation for violations of the Animal Welfare Act.
Though the Topeka Zoo pledged greater
transparency following the deaths of several animals under the previous zoo
director – including a hippo who died in overheated water and two animals
infested with maggots – it is withholding the USDA’s August 28 inspection
report from the public as it appeals the citation, even though this is a matter
of public record. The zoo already faces formal charges by the USDA that involve
51 "willful violations" of the Animal Welfare Act over a four-year
period. This includes providing "minimally appropriate husbandry" for
the elephants and failure to inspect their feet as frequently as necessary.
Asian elephant Sunda and African Tembo spend
the majority of their lives standing in a tiny concrete barn. Winters are
especially hard on them, as freezing weather forces them indoors for virtually
the entire season. Sunda suffers from chronic foot infections caused by lack of
movement and standing on hard surfaces. Foot disease is a leading killer of
elephants in zoos.
Animal Outreach of Kansas has been fighting
for five years to send Tembo and Sunda to a sanctuary, where they would live in
a large, natural habitat in a far more moderate climate and could choose
companions of their own species. Separating Tembo and Sunda is not an issue
because they don’t get along, according to zoo records and as seen in a recent
TV news report.
Tell the City of Topeka
Pl click here:
https://secure2.convio.net/ida/site/Advocacy?cmd=display&page=UserAction&id=2245
[Ref: http://www.idausa.org/]
Til next time,
Meggi
