The 10 Worst Zoos to Be an Elephant

by Stephanie Feldstein · 2010-01-16 09:00:00 UTC
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Overcrowding, unprecedented death rate, cramped quarters, circus-style training, chronic health problems, solitary confinement.

Those are some of the characteristics of zoos that have been deemed the worst places to be an elephant.

In Defense of Animals just released its sixth report on the Top Ten Worst Zoos for Elephants. 2009 saw the first entry of a Canadian zoo (which shouldn't be surprising, considering what's been happening at the Calgary Zoo under the oversight of the Canadian Association of Zoos and Aquariums), with Toronto making the list.

The nine other slots are filled by American zoos: the San Antonio, Honolulu, Reid Park (Ariz.), Houston, Topeka, Oregon, Bronx, Toledo, and Brookfield (Ill.) zoos. They're joined by two new inductees into the Elephant Hall of Shame -- those whose conditions for elephants have shown little to no progress -- the Los Angeles Zoo in California and Woodland Park Zoo in Washington.

Three of the worst offenders (Oregon, Illinois, and California) are in states that had ranked in the top five for strong animal abuse laws. Apparently the standards for animals in captivity hasn't caught up with the expectations for domestic animals.

At the very least, IDA says, zoos need to follow the lead of the two U.S. sanctuaries that give elephants acreage of natural habitat, The Elephant Sanctuary in Tennessee and Performing Animal Welfare Society in California. Or, even better, they should follow the example set last year by the Central Zoo Authority in India, which freed elephants from zoos and circuses.

Photo credit: brooklyn (Topeka Zoo)

Stephanie Feldstein is a Change.org Editor who has been part of the animal welfare and rescue community for over a decade, and most recently worked for an environmental organization.

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