Auckland Zoo Kashin passes...

NZ Jeremy

NZ Jeremy

Well-Known Member
Sad news from Auckland Zoo and brings into doubt Elephants continuing to be exhibited at Auckland Zoo:

Zoo closed as staff grieve for Kashin - National - NZ Herald News

Zoo closed as staff grieve for Kashin

Auckland Zoo will be closed tomorrow as staff grieve the loss of 40-year-old elephant, Kashin, who died today.

The female elephant, who has been at the zoo for 36 years, was euthanased after losing her battle with chronic health conditions.

"Zoo staff are devastated, grieving the loss of their incredibly spirited and gentle matriarch," zoo chairman Graeme Mulholland said.

"Kashin touched the lives, not just of the zoo family, but thousands of New Zealanders and international visitors who came to know and love her... she will be greatly missed by all."

He said the decision to put the elephant down followed years of chronic arthritis and foot abscesses.

More recently she had developed skin infections over her body that were not healing.

Kashin's death was expected to have an impact on the zoo's remaining elephant - 26-year-old Burma - who would be closely monitored as another elephant was sought.

In March, the Auckland City Council approved a succession plan for the zoo, quelling fears that Kashin and Burma would be the last elephants to live there.

The zoo plans to build a herd of three males and two females between 2011 and 2015.

The zoo will re-open on Wednesday.
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I take it that's a different Burma to the one that was at Taronga?
 
I don't think so, Burma's been at Auckland Zoo 20 odd years...
 
I'm really surprised that the zoo has closed for a day to mourn the death of Kashin, regardless of how beloved she was. Hopefully another elephant is brought into the zoo so that the solitary female is not left alone for too long. The idea of having 3 males and 2 females in the future is certainly costly, but both Melbourne and Taronga recently created viable elephant programs so hopefully Auckland can build a fantastic new exhibit and do the same.
 
I am saddened by the death of Kashin, following over the last few years via the tv programme , the zoo, on satellite tv.
I think it is a wonderful gesture of the management of the zoo, to close it down as a mark of respect for a much loved animal, and being one of only 2 Asian elephant in NZ, almost a national treasure, as well as for the shattered staff, but at the end of the day life goes on.
Hopefully the keepers can help Burma in the short term adjust, to her newly found single status, and efforts are made to find a partner or more for Burma.

This may be ridiculous, but isn't there a single African elephant also in NZ, could this option be considered in the short term?
 
I hope they`ll send her to a zoo in australia which is better equipped to care fo elephants and has more space. As far as I know, there are no females availible in Australia so they won`t be able to find a companion for her soon, and two isn`t a good group size anyway. Female elephants need to live in complex social groups and not just with one other elephant. On the other hand, foot problems are caused by bad conditions in captivity - lack of exercise, standing too much time on concrete, small barns so that the ele can`t get away from their own feces during the night. They really shouldn`t continue to keep elephants in these conditions that made Kashin so sick and caused her to die, she wasn`t that old...
 
poor kashin, rest in peace.

I do hope they can build a new exhibit as fast a possible so Burma can have some companions.
 
Short-term: I would also advocate for her to travel to Australia and be integrated in one of the 3 herds (she may have a tiny window left to possibly breed and at least would enjoy the social interaction.

Long-term: Allthough a sad moment for zoo staff and visitors, it is the best op. to either move forward on the another Asian elephant import and building a new exhibit or ... (phase out all-together). I tend to favour option 1 (chuckles ...)!
 
kiang said:
This may be ridiculous, but isn't there a single African elephant also in NZ, could this option be considered in the short term?
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It owned by a circus and IIRC also a male so not likely…

Yassa said:
I hope they`ll send her to a zoo in australia which is better equipped to care fo elephants and has more space. As far as I know, there are no females availible in Australia so they won`t be able to find a companion for her soon, and two isn`t a good group size anyway. Female elephants need to live in complex social groups and not just with one other elephant. On the other hand, foot problems are caused by bad conditions in captivity - lack of exercise, standing too much time on concrete, small barns so that the ele can`t get away from their own feces during the night. They really shouldn`t continue to keep elephants in these conditions that made Kashin so sick and caused her to die, she wasn`t that old...
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Do you know much about where she is currently kept or are you making assumptions..? Kashin came to Auckland Zoo in 1973 as was kept for almost two decades in a small, cold elephant house and was on concrete for 24 hours a day, almost all her health problems relate to that time… In the early 90’s a large naturalistic enclosure was built and the other elephant Burma who has spent almost all her life in this enclosure has no problems physically or emotionally that I know of… The enclosure is one of the better ones I've seen on my travels and there should be no issues in the future...

The Zoo also has plans to spend $13.5 million to massively expand the number and size of the enclosures and the elephant house and build a new male elephant house to have a larger female herd, males and begin a breeding programme, it was planned to be completed in approximately 10 years when they thought Kashin would be passing on, her deterioration was extraordinarily quick… I'm not sure how this event will affect those plans or if they are dependant on a companion being found for Burma in the short term...

I heard the Zoo Director on the radio today, the Zoo is working with NZ Bio-Security to try and import an elephant as a companion as soon as possible, this is the avenue they are exploring at the moment…

Kashin was buried today on the zoo grounds, in a non-public area where she liked to play… Part of the reason the zoo was closed today was so the staff could grieve and make arrangements for a public memorial service to be held…
 
hmmmmmm.

guess auckland zoo will be kicking themselves for backing out of being a partner in the australian elephant acquisition consortium. they'd already have some other elephants if that was the case.

whilst i'd like to see both jumbo (the african) and burma moved to WPZ and perth respectively, i think it's pretty obvious what will happen. negotiations will take place that see jumbo move to auckland. something that should have happened a few years ago.
 
I remember reading somewhere that the zoo, even hoped of keeping two adult bulls. This true? or just one?
 
Read two posts back when I talk about the zoo's elephant expansion plan... Males, plural... I've read two or even three males were/are planned...
 
NZ Jeremy said:
The Zoo also has plans to spend $13.5 million to massively expand the number and size of the enclosures and the elephant house and build a new male elephant house to have a larger female herd, males

…
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Sorry if you think I didn't read your post I did.

I just thought that the male elephant house would be only able to hold one and the
Males reffered to juviniles ( say that were born in australia that need a new temporary home away from their family) .

But two to three adult bulls is great, I can't really think of any zoo that keeps to adult bull elephants, I know Oregon keeps 3.
 
The Oregon Zoo has 3 bull elephants but they have the finances in place to build a 6 acre enclosure as well as potentially an off-site breeding yard. It will be immensely interesting to see what Auckland come up with, as they could build a massive, multi-acre exhibit like the ones that are now becoming common in America; a puny little enclosure like the one at Taronga, with a separate bull paddock; or there could be zero elephants altogether. That last option might be the least viable, as it appears that the zoo is intent on expanding their "herd" of elephants.
 
@dragon(ele)nerd: thanks for the link. Auckland Zoo is looking quite foolish at the moment, as the zoo declined the opportunity to receive elephants a few years ago and yet knew that Kashin was struggling health-wise. There has been indecision about whether to pursue an elephant breeding program, and with all of the delays the zoo is now left with a single female pachyderm. Any zoo keeping a solitary elephant is frowned upon in the 21st century, and if Auckland truly does go two years with only Burma then it will be a complete joke.
 
snowleopard said:
@dragon(ele)nerd: thanks for the link. Auckland Zoo is looking quite foolish at the moment, as the zoo declined the opportunity to receive elephants a few years ago and yet knew that Kashin was struggling health-wise. There has been indecision about whether to pursue an elephant breeding program, and with all of the delays the zoo is now left with a single female pachyderm. Any zoo keeping a solitary elephant is frowned upon in the 21st century, and if Auckland truly does go two years with only Burma then it will be a complete joke.
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You will have to acknowledge that probably other factors played their part and somehow an expanded elephant exhibit was not perceived feasible at the time. Given that Auckland is not a particularly wealthy establishment, I can figure that ... well the investment and the long-term commitment needed might have been some of the stumbling blocks at the time.

I am still not sure if they really should continue ... or consider other species (obviously for a pan ARAZPA elephant programme it would be a bonus).
 
It seems the only option to keep her from being alone would be to send her to an Australian Zoo or try and accquire the last to Asian Circus Elephants in the region. I wonder if Australia Zoo or Perth would take her. I don't think Taronga or Taronga Western Plains would and her coming to Australia is taking up what may soon be very valuable space for the new additions that will need rehoming in the next 5 - 10 years.
 
Also (and sorry for bringing her in to this) what is MAF and AQIS stance on elephants between Australia and New Zealand. I believe that it may not be possible for an African Elephant to come from New Zealand so where would that leave Kashin?
 
the exhibit plans were underway at the time, and like mentioned before they knew Kashin was going to die prematurely but not this fast, the staff probably assumed by the time Kashin died a herd would already be over in Auckland.

Though like snowleopard said, importing elephants into auckland from a country where they are nature would certainly not be an easy task, just look at the contreversy over the arrival in 2006 of the 8 elephants to Taronga and Melbourne. Their qurantine period went for severly longer than planned because of animal rights activists.
In which the elephants would of been uncomfortable ( in comparision to the exhibits in australia and back in Thailand) in a qurantine enclosure for a much longer time then they should of been.
 
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