Petition: Send Abused Elephants to Animal Sanctuaries

Elephants are fantastic creatures. Their great size and sweet demeanors make them loved by many. Sadly, they face a multitude of threats to their survival, mostly at the hands of humans. Elephants are trophy-hunted, pushed out of their natural habitat, poached for their ivory, neglected in zoos, exploited for various tourist attractions, and forced to perform in circuses. Fortunately, many places are trying to create rules and pass legislation to protect elephants. Washington D.C. banned the sale of elephant ivory; California banned the use of bullhooks for handline elephants, and many countries have banned the use of wild animals in circuses.

Despite California’s ban, The Monterey Zoo in Monterey, California is illegally using bullhooks, prods, and other cruel equipment on their elephants. PETA filed a lawsuit against the zoo on August 12th, for its illegal and inhumane use of these tools for training. In 2018, an elephant named Paula  “began thrashing” and stepped on the foot of a handler, who had been aggressive to her. PETA attributes the elephant’s response to the mental and physical torture that it has suffered while at the zoo. A few months later, Paula, 52, and another elephant that was present during the incident, Kristy, 48,  both died within a short time span.  Autopsies confirmed that both deaths resulted from poor care. Paula was euthanized due to “severe osteochondrosis, a painful joint condition that typically results in lameness, joint swelling, and a reduced range of motion.” Kristy died of “a severe bacterial infection that was causing her intestinal tissue to rot away.”

The owner of The Monterey Zoo, Charlie Sammut is a former cop who started collecting exotic animals for the zoo after he seized a pet cougar from someone he had arrested. He decided to train the animals and exploited them even further, by loaning them out to be on TV and film. He is obviously not concerned about animal welfare and should not be allowed to operate a wildlife facility.

Sign this petition to demand that Monterey revoke Monterey Zoo’s operating license so that these poor animals can be relocated to sanctuaries, where they can finally live safe and happy lives!

To continue speaking up, sign these other petitions as well:

• Ban Use of Exotic Animals in Australian Circuses
• Restrict the Ivory and Rhino Horn Trade in Massachusetts
• Strengthen Animal Cruelty Laws in Sri Lanka to Protect Elephants
• Ban Ownership of Elephants in Sri Lanka
• Ask Travel Publisher, Fodor’s, to Stop Promoting Elephant Captivity
• Tell Sri Lanka to ban the ownership of captive elephants
• Protect Elephants No Longer “Working” During Pandemic
• Demand Investigation into Case of Endangered Elephant Believed to have Been Poisoned

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