Dumbo Behind Bars: Elephant-Sized Controversy Arises Over Captive Elephants
For years and years parents have taken their children to zoos to see exotic animals, animals that they don’t get to see everyday. They want to see lions and tigers and bears. Oh my! High on the the list of animals to be seen are elephants, nature’s gentle giants. These cute, (hardly) cuddly animals are the largest of the land mammals. But all of that could change. Elephants could be removed from zoos forever if In Defense of Animals (IDA) and a handful of scientists and activists get their way.
June 20 highlighted the International Day of Action for Elephants in Zoos. In Defense of Animals (IDA) and activists in over 30 cities worldwide (including L.A., Washington D.C., and more) participated in a day of demonstration to inform the public about the travesty of keeping Dumbo locked up - even Salt Lake City had one demonstrator brave the torrential rain in order to bring justice to our big grey friends.
Elliot M. Katz, DVM, President of IDA said that ”Zoos can no longer ignore the mounting scientific evidence of the devastating effects of captivity on elephants.” Infanticide, Herpes and tuberculosis are just a few of the ailments prevalent in captive elephants, and zoo populations are not self sustaining, unlike populations in natural environments.
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On their day of demonstration, IDA wanted to focus on the fact that it isn’t so much about kind or unkind keepers or members of the public, but about outdated policy. Elephants just aren’t meant for the cage (unlike birds and snakes and the like, which thrive in small, cramped and confined areas).
Here are some facts about elephants as presented by IDA:
- Wild elephants walk long distances daily in home ranges measuring hundreds of square miles. The typical zoo exhibit confines elephants to a few acres or less.
- Zoos drastically shorten the lives of both African and Asian elephants.
- Over half the elephants who died in Association of Zoos and Aquariums-accredited zoos since 2000 did not reach the age of 40; wild elephants live 60-70 years.
- Elephants in zoos suffer serious health and psychological problems, including chronic foot infections, arthritis, abnormal behaviors, early infertility, high infant mortality and stillbirth rates.
I understand that elephants aren’t meant for the cage. No city zoo is large enough to provide elephants with the space that they need to roam. But elephants aren’t the only ones. What about lions? And tigers? And bears? Oh my! It seems as though no zoo is big enough to comfortably hold any of these cute and cuddly animals, let alone the not so cute nor cuddly creatures that claim their residence at the local zoo. And suppose there was a zoo large enough; it would take hours (or luck) for patrons to find the animals they want to see.
So, what is to be done? Should elephants be released? Should zoos be done away with? Or is it OK to bring the wilderness to the inner city and give kids the chance to smile when they see a real-life elephant for the first time?
Photo Credit: Adam Foster | Codefor via flickr under Creative Commons License
Zoos are relics from the past, from the days of Victorian animal collectors and Teddy Roosevelt’s African safaris, the days of dominating nature and other cultures. They are changing their “brand”, trying to keep their audience, making themselves more family-friendly and bolting on a conservation and education message. But this image is tissue-thin: they are firmly in the entertainment industry. These days there are plenty of entertainment alternatives, and for sure a lot of better ways to learn about wildlife and nature. There is no “nature” in the artificial “naturalistic” zoo enclosures: no bugs under rocks, birds in the trees, rustling in the bushes, changing seasons, no complexity — instead, just a few animals standing around, waiting to be fed and surrounded by people who look at them for a few minutes until their attention wanders and they move on. We don’t need zoos any more, and certainly conservation doesn’t depend on them. If you genuinely care about wildlife, give your money to WWF or Conservation International, not to the cash register at a zoo.
Please people…pick up a book and read about elephants. The falsehoods and misrepresentations of fact in your postings would embarrass even an informed child.
Elephants do live into their 60s and 70s in the wild. In fact, there are many elephants in their 60s in Amboseli National Park in Kenya. There are even females in their mid to late 50s that have had calves.
Saying that elephants don’t need space completely ignores their structure, phsyiology, communication and behaviour. Everything about them is built for a wide-ranging mobile lifestyle.
The idea that all elephants have it rough in the wild is nonsense. In some range countries poaching and human/elephant conflict is a problem, but in other areas it’s not and elephant populations are stable or, in some cases, increasing. I’ve been to some of those areas.
Most elephant conservationists dismiss the role of zoos and say they have no legitimate role to play in saving elephants. That’s because elephants don’t have trouble breeding in the wild, they just need to be left alone.
In zoos, elephant populations are diminishing because of infanticide, rejection, and early mortality of adults. North America’s zoo elephant population is unhealthy, riddled with TB and Elephant Herpes Virus, and many elephants suffer from lack of mental stimulation, resulting in a broad range of abnormal behaviours. It’s a real mess.
So…please, get informed. Being naive and gullible is fine, but not when it comes at the expense of the elephants.
I read above that IDA has a “radically anti-zoo slant.” Good! Shouldn’t any group that really cares about animals? Shoving wild animals into small enclosures and then exploiting them for profit is just wrong. How is it that some of you don’t understand that???