_____________________________________________________  LEAVE NO ELEPHANT BEHIND

_____________________________________________________ Friends of Philly Zoo Elephants opposes the proposed move to the Pittsburgh breeding facility.  Please read our Op-Ed (published in Pittsburgh's largest newspaper) here   BREEDING FACILITY:  BAD NEWS FOR ELEPHANTS Does this look like a "sanctuary"?

Kallie and Bette  will spend most of their time at the Pittsburgh breeding facility in this barn, shown left.    __________________________________________

* RECOMMENDED VIDEOS * - Learn more about elephants:  Watch ABC 20/20 program on elephants click here  ! - Awesome video about zoos and conservation here - must see!   ________________________________________  ~ PETAL ~ December 1955 - June 9, 2009  Read more about her sad life here  Video from Petal's last day here Petal tribute photos here PETAL DEATH UPDATE: ZOO RELEASES SELECTED INFORMATION FROM NECROPSY REPORT PETAL DIED OF CAPTIVITY INDUCED DISEASE - READ MORE HERE

Meet the Elephants: ----------------------------------------------------

KALLIE (photo, left) Kallie is approximately 26 years old.  She was born in Zimbabwe in 1982.  She watched her family get killed in a mass culling and was shipped to the United States to work in circuses and zoos. She has lived in the Philadelphia Zoo since approximately April 2004.   Prior to that she was severely abused by her former owners.  Each night - summer, fall, winter, spring, she is chained in a concrete barn the size of three double-car garages along with Bette (and Petal until she died). READ MORE ABOUT KALLIE HERE                                                                                                                   .

BETTE (photo, right)  Bette is approximately 26 years old.  She was born in Zimbabwe in 1982.  She watched her family get killed in a mass culling and was shipped to the United States to work in circuses and zoos. She has lived in the Philadelphia Zoo since approximately April 2004.  Not much is known about her past except that she was used in circuses and to give rides at the Philly Zoo, among other places.           DULARY (photo, below ) Dulary is approximately 43 years old.  She was born in Thailand but was taken from her family when she was less than a year old to be placed  on exhibit and has lived in the Philadelphia Zoo her entire life.  Had she been allowed to stay in the wild, she probably would have given birth to several babies by now and would be enjoying the roles of sister, daughter, mother, aunt and perhaps even grandmother.  Instead, she is confined a cramped and barren exhibit during the day and imprisoned inside a concrete barn at night.  During the cold winter months, she spends days on end inside the concrete barn. The last time she walked on grass or anything other than hard, packed surfaces was when she was a baby in Thailand. UPDATE MAY 2007:  DULARY IS AT THE ELEPHANT SANCTUARY!  THANKS PHILLY!!!  READ ABOUT HER PROGRESS here

As seen at our demonstrations- BABY ELEPHANT TOY For sale here (we are not affiliated with the site in any way, but so many people ask us where to buy these elephants, we offer this information as a courtesy!)     Sign up for our Email Newsletter         ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Philadelphia Zoo's changing "plan" for its African elephants: -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------   In October 2006, the Philadelphia Zoo announced that African elephants Petal, Kallie, and Bette would move to the Maryland Zoo in spring 2007, and that Dulary, the Asian elephant, would move to The Elephant Sanctuary in Tennessee.   In March 2007, citing funding issues, the Maryland Zoo announced that it would not accept Petal, Kallie, and Bette.   On April 26, 2007, the Philadelphia Zoo announced that Petal, Kallie and Bette would be shipped to a proposed breeding facility in Somerset County, Pennsylvania (near Pittsburgh) in the fall.  Dulary moved to The Elephant Sanctuary a few days later, arriving on May 1, 2007.   On October 19, 2007, the Pittsburgh Zoo broke ground for the breeding facility.    July 2008:  According to zoo sources, the Phase I barn (10,000 sq. ft.) is not yet complete.   As of October 2008, Philly Zoo Elephants KALLIE and BETTE STILL SPEND A MINIMUM of 16 HOURS A DAY IN THIS CEMENT BARN:     --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------     ____________________________________________________________________  www.pawsweb.org   Photo of PAWS:   Photo copyright: The Performing Animal Welfare Society     This wonderful sanctuary, home to 12 former zoo and circus elephants, will take Kallie and Bette at no charge!