We the undersigned hereby take a pledge to boycott visiting the Edmonton Valley Zoo until such time that Lucy the Elephant be allowed a second opinion by independent elephant veterinarians. Lucy needs an impartial determination of her current health status and a second opinion by a team of experts as to whether or not she could be safely transported to one of 2 US sanctuaries. We cannot support a facility that has shown such callous disregard for this elephant''s well being. She has served the City of Edmonton and it's zoo faithfully and she finally deserves a chance for a better life in her twilight years. All efforts must be undertaken to afford her the chance to live longer and more comfortably. Zoo elephants die prematurely and suffer more than nearly any other species in captivity particularly if they are housed alone. Lucy's life expectancy could be extended if she had better living conditions and around the clock access to expert medical care.
Lucy deserves the opportunity to finally roam freely on soft earth with the companionship of her own species. For the first time in her life, she could finally have a chance to forage, swim, have mud baths, and not have to be on display for the public, performing silly circus tricks and painting pictures to bring in revenue for the zoo. All citizens deserve the chance to retire after 40 years of dedicated service, including Lucy.
Local citizens as well as concerned people worldwide are speaking out to inform zoo and city officials that we will not visit your zoo and vow to spread the word about her unfortunate solitary confinement in a barren tiny concrete enclosure in a climate that is detrimental to her health. We will encourage others to take this pledge as well.
This pledge is also available to be signed on paper through Lucy's local advocacy group - Lucy's Edmonton Advocates' Project. For more information about obtaining a paper copy, please send an email to info@leapforlucy.com.
In conjunction with our online and paper pledge, we will be distributing buttons with our pledge message with a minimum donation to cover costs. We encourage people to send in photos wearing your Lucy pledge buttons that we will compile in an album. Please visit https://www.facebook.com/groups/leapforlucy/ for more information.
Lucy's Edmonton Advocates' Project (LEAP)
Thank you!
#BoycottEVZ #YEGzoo #LucysLifeMatters #SaveLucy
