Mayor Garcetti, help free Billy the elephant from the LA Zoo.

Billy is an Asian elephant who has lived alone in a small enclosure at the LA Zoo for 30 years. Living next to him are three female Asian Elephants that he is not able to socialize with. Elephants are highly intelligent, social, sensitive and active creatures. In the wild they live in large herds with complex social structures, and can travel up to 30 miles a day. In zoos, they live in artificial replicas of the wild that cannot meet their physical and psychological needs. For example, Billy has only one acre to move about, the artificial lake he bathes in is chlorinated, and the trees are covered in electrical wires that shock him if he tries to eat the leaves. The consequences of living in captivity, are physical ailments, including foot problems, arthritis, obestity, and half the life span of those in the wild.  Psychologically, they suffer from boredom, stress and depression and display stereotypic movements, which are repetitivie movements like rocking and bobbing. Billy has displayed this behavior. Elephants living alone suffer the most. Psychologists have proven that social animals suffer terribly when living a solitary life. To make matters worse, Billy is used as a sperm donor for captive breeding programs in North America. This is an invasive procedure, that is exorbitantly expensive, with a low success rate including hign incidences of infant mortality.

The irony of all this, is that Los Angeles, led by Mayor Eric Garcetti, is one of the most progressive cities in the country, and that includes animal issues. We have some of the strictest animal cruelty laws in the country. In 2014, the city of LA banned the use of bullhooks in circuses. The city is planning on building a wildlife crossing over one of our busiest freeways. As a result of a state law, pet stores in LA are now banned from selling puppies from puppy mills. They must be rescues. This includes the sale of kittens and bunnies. And Mayor Garcetti has been working with LA Animal Servies to make our shelters kill free. Keeping Billy captive at the zoo, is not congruent with the values of a progressive city. Many cities across the country have already closed down their elephant exhibits, including San Franscisco, Chicago and Detroit. It's time Mayor Garcetti, and the city of Los Angeles, do the right thing, and send Billy to an accredited sanctuary and ultimately shut down the entire elephant exhibit.

If you would like to take further action, you can contact Mayor Garcetti's office at 213-978-0600, or email him at mayor.garcetti@lacity.org. He is also on Twitter, and his handle is @MayorOfLA.

Email and call Los Angeles City Councilmember David Ryu, District 4, and ask him to support Motion 17-0453 calling for the release of Billy the elephant to an accredited sanctuary. His email is david.ryu@lacity.org, and his phone number is 213-473-7004.

If you are a resident of Los Angeles, find your City Councilmember at neighborhoodinfo.lacity.org, and call and email asking her or him to support Motion 17-0453, calling for the release of Billy the elephant.

If you would like to get involved in rallies to free Billy at the LA Zoo, or go to city council meetings, please visit the website and Facebook page, Elephant Guardians of Los Angeles.

Thank you so much for taking the time to help Billy.