To Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa:

We, the undersigned, support Last Chance for Animals (LCA) in its call to action for all three elephants currently housed at the Los Angeles Zoo -- Ruby, Gita, and Billy -- to be relocated to sanctuaries and the elephant exhibit at the zoo to be closed down permanently.

We respectfully urge you to do what is best for these elephants and allow them to live out the rest of their lives in a sanctuary that can provide the environment and care they need.

Elephants in zoos suffer from the following:

• Lack of adequate space:  Even after renovation, the L.A. Zoo elephant exhibit will only be one acre. Sanctuaries, such as the PAWS sanctuary in Northern California, have hundreds of acres.
  
• Shortened life spans:  Elephants in captivity live 40-45 years, elephants in the wild live 50-70 years.
  
• Health problems:  Elephants in captivity regularly suffer from chronic arthritis and foot abscesses (the two main causes of death in captive elephants) due to lack of proper exercise and standing on hard surfaces. Tuberculosis is also common among elephants in captivity.
  
• Lack of proper socialization: Elephants are highly social creatures who in the wild travel in family units of 10-12. In captivity, “herds” can be as small as one.
  
• Lives of abuse and neglect: It is common practice for elephants to be beaten, shocked, and chained for long periods of time.

Sanctuaries offer a peaceful retirement for elephants that have spent their lives “entertaining” humans. The PAWS sanctuary in Northern California has agreed to accept all three elephants and boasts over 100 acres of vegetation and lakes similar to the natural habitats of wild elephants. These majestic animals deserve more than being on display for human curiosity and should be allowed to live as the social, intelligent animals they were born to be.

Please follow the lead of other national zoos that have closed down their elephant exhibits due to the dangers zoo environments pose to these magnificent animals.

As a show of our support, we refuse to patronize the Los Angeles Zoo until it closes down its elephant exhibit and relocates Ruby, Gita, and Billy to sanctuaries.

Sincerely,

The Undersigned