Should Billy stay in LA and await the $42 million Pachyderm Forest being built to house him and potential mates? The new, six-acre "Pachyderm Forest" will be six times larger than his current enclosure and will feature nearly four acres of open space with pools, mud holes and a waterfall. It's one of the largest planned elephant enclosures in the country.
Activists complain that the new exhibit would still be too confining and depressing with inadequate space for Billy to roam, let alone a desired herd of eleven, and that Billy should be sent to a sanctuary.
It's a "wild" story of politics, pachyderms and - above all else - the city's purse strings.
WEB EXTRAS:
Elephant Breeding - More on breeding and what it means for the elephants.
Why Does Billy Bob? - Tony Cardenas, L.A. City Councilman and John Lewis, L.A. Zoo Director on why Billy bobs his head repetitively.
Want to subscribe to SoCal Connected's RSS feed? Click here.
Val said go to this blog to find out what HER opinion is - I'm really interested to know that but can't see what to click on - it's very frustrating - I don't have time to look at everything here. I think it's terrible keeping elephants alone in a small zoo - they are herd animals and need to be in a herd and the part of the program that I saw didn't emphasize that. Please do more programs like this to raise people's compassion and sensitivity. How about showing us the Truth about FACTORY FARMS and slaughterhouses?
thank you,
Wendy
If you are interested in the story of Billy (or other captive elephants for that matter), I highly recommend reading Hannah's Dream by Diane Hammond. It is a fictitious story with very similar facts to the Billy debacle. Google it. Well worth the read if you are interested in this story.