This alert is no longer active, but here for reference. Animals still need your help.

UPDATE: After 50 years in captivity, Tembo fell, and unable to get up, she was euthanized on May 16, 2026. We are encouraged to hear that the zoo is closing its elephant exhibit and no more elephants will ever suffer and die at the Topeka Zoo.

Tembo is now alone at Topeka Zoo after the death of her longtime companion, Cora. Elephants are deeply social beings who suffer in isolation, and solitary confinement places Tembo at serious psychological and physical risk. After decades in captivity at a failing facility, she urgently needs to be transferred to a true sanctuary.

Tell officials to act now.

Cora, a 67-year-old Asian elephant, recently died at Topeka Zoo, leaving Tembo, a 47-year-old African elephant who has spent her life in captivity, completely alone. In Defense of Animals, which has advocated for elephants in captivity for more than two decades, warns that prolonged isolation places her mental and physical well-being in jeopardy. Isolation is torture for female elephants; they are unequivocally sentient, social, and depend on a matriarchal herd. After 47 years in captivity, Tembo is now facing a final, cruel act from a facility with a proven record of failure.

Tembo and Cora's suffering stems directly from Topeka Zoo's inadequate living conditions and history of neglect, which have landed the facility on In Defense of Animals' watchdog list of the 10 Worst Zoos for Elephants.

Elephants at the Topeka Zoo in Kansas were forced to endure cramped, unsuitable enclosures on unsuitable surfaces, which are the leading cause of premature death for captive elephants.

Loneliness and lack of stimulation result in zoochosis. Tembo deserves a home that provides companionship and autonomy. A secure transfer to a true sanctuary is the only moral path forward.

Letter to Decision Maker(s) for reference:

Subject: Send Solitary Tembo to Sanctuary

On behalf of In Defense of Animals, an animal protection organization with over 250,000 supporters, I respectfully urge you to retire the solitary elephant Tembo to a sanctuary. I feel a deep sorrow for the loss of Cora and the agony that Tembo is enduring at the Topeka Zoo.

The passing of her companion, Cora, has not only compounded Tembo's grief and suffering but has condemned her to a life of unjustifiable isolation, a form of psychological torture for elephants, as they are as sentient as we are. Her enclosure has always been inadequate for a far-roaming elephant, but is now devoid of the one thing she desperately needs: the companionship of her own species.

I urge the immediate end to Tembo’s suffering with these actions:

1. Publicly declare the permanent closure of the elephant exhibit.

2. Secure Tembo’s transfer to a reputable and true sanctuary.

3. Provide public accountability for Tembo’s relocation.

Please do the right thing. End her torment. Release distressed Tembo to the freedom and comfort of a true sanctuary.

Sincerely,

Signed

This alert is no longer active, but here for reference. Animals still need your help.