Buffalo Zoo’s Sneaky Elephant Move is Cruel and Traumatic, Animal Protection Organization Says

IDA blasts zoo for shipping elephants like pieces of furniture; calls for permanent closure of Buffalo elephant exhibit

Buffalo, NY – In Defense of Animals (IDA) today blasted the Buffalo Zoo for sneaking two of three Asian elephants out of the zoo under cover of darkness and shipping them off to the Columbus Zoo while minor modifications are made to the zoo’s 1912-era elephant house.  The move occurred sometime between Sunday night and Monday morning. The third elephant is scheduled to be shipped to Columbus shortly.

 

“It is cruel and traumatic to force three elephants who are not accustomed to traveling onto a truck and ship them off to another zoo, as if they were pieces of furniture to be put in storage,” said IDA president Elliot Katz, DVM. “As bad is the plan to ship the elephants back to Buffalo this summer and house them in a renovated elephant exhibit that will still be woefully inadequate and inhumane for the earth’s largest land mammal.”

 

Two of the three elephants have not traveled in over 20 years. It is common for zoos to spend weeks, or even months, preparing elephants for travel because it is so stressful for them.

 

IDA listed the Buffalo Zoo in the number 5 spot on its yearly ’10 Worst Zoos for Elephants” list. The group cited overall lack of space and the fact that the elephants have been chained for at least 15 hours overnight in the tiny and outdated elephant house, where they stand and lie in their own feces and urine.

 

The Buffalo Zoo is spending $1 million to add 750 square feet to its elephant house, meaning that three elephants will be forced to live in a space of 1800 square feet.  Due to Buffalo ’s cold climate, elephants are forced to be indoors for long stretches of time. 

 

“The Buffalo Zoo will be cramming three elephants into a space equivalent to a small house,” said Katz.  “This might be fine for a family of four people, but it is totally inadequate for three 7,000 – 10,000 pound elephants who would naturally walk ten or miles a day in the wild.”

 

“Elephants simply don’t belong in Buffalo ,” concluded Katz.  “It’s time to close Buffalo ’s antiquated and inhumane elephant exhibit and send the elephants to The Elephant Sanctuary, a spacious natural habitat refuge in Tennessee .”

 

For more information see www.helpelephants.com.