Edmonton Valley Zoo Lucy The Solitary Elephant

snowleopard

snowleopard

Well-Known Member
15+ year member
Premium Member
I used to visit Lucy the Asian elephant at the Valley Zoo in Edmonton when I was a child, and she currently lives completely alone in a badly outdated enclosure. Almost her entire life has been spent at this northern, freezing-cold location, and I've read reports that have determined that due to the extremely cold weather in Edmonton she spends up to 80% of her life inside her tiny barn. This website is attempting to get the zoo to move her to a sanctuary:

Home ?(Kids Save Lucy)?

If not a sanctuary, at the very least this small zoo should shift her to another zoo in a warm climate, and with lots of other elephants for companionship. She is 34 years old and has known snow and ice her entire life, and so anything would be an improvement on her current surroundings. However, she is the logo of the zoo, easily the most famous resident there, and there is the theory that she would struggle anywhere else. Ridiculous.
 
Lucy has been at the zoo for almost her entire 34 years, and is really the one and only iconic animal in Edmonton. The tiny Valley Zoo likes having this elephant shut up inside the barn for 75-80% of the zoo because apparently she is "too old" to move and therefore the meager yearly attendance is bolstered by having the zoo's favourite animal remain indefinitely. There has been a lot of talk during the past decade of having Canada's most northerly zoo focus strictly on cold-weather species, but nothing has ever been confirmed with that. Incidentally, the indoor gibbon exhibit is the smallest I've ever seen and this zoo has many subpar enclosures.
 
It would be in Lucy's best interest if she were relocated to another facility. The zoo knows that. I am sure they truly care for her, but it is time to put her needs in front of their own. They said the same thing about moving Maggie from Alaska to No. Cal. Maggie is thriving. The rhetoric from both sides has gotten out of control. Zoos and activists are both making outrageous statements. Sanctuaries serve a purpose and so do zoos. The Elephant Sanctuary and PAWs need to exist for elephants like Lucy. However, if there is another zoo that can meet Lucy's needs, I am for sending her there as well. There is one thing I am certain of. Elephants are social creatures and it is torture for them to be alone.
 
This is a 65-page document that was released on June 30th, 2009, and it addresses the plight of Lucy the Asian elephant at Edmonton's Valley Zoo. The situation of a solitary elephant rocking back and forth for hours on end in a freezing climate is similar to the tale of Maggie the elephant at the Alaska Zoo. I'm sure that eventually the Valley Zoo will cave in to public pressure to shift their pachyderm, and it is a crying shame that the zoo has done absolutely nothing at this point.

Interesting side note, but on pages 9, 10 and 12 I am personally quoted (along with another ZooChat member) in the extensively researched document. On page 9 the quote is attributed to "Snowleopard", and it just goes to show that veterinarians and other prominent advocates for high-quality zoos will spend time looking for handy quotations on this particular site. There are ZooChat quotes on page 59, 60 and perhaps in a few other locations. I have no problem whatsoever being mentioned, and in fact I am excited to see that the Valley Zoo is finally receiving a mountain of criticism in regards to the elephant that they keep in its puny barn for 75% of its life. Whatever ones opinion, I think that any sane and intelligent individual will admit that an elephant living on hundreds of acres in a warm-climate sanctuary is better off than inside a tiny barn in icy Edmonton. Lucy should go somewhere with lots of sunshine and other elephants, and whether that is a zoo or a sanctuary then who really cares?

http://zoocheck.com/reportpdfs/ZimLucyReportJune2009.pdf
 
Lol, your a celebrity now snowleopard!
 
As I do agree Lucy should be sent to a sanctuary I do not think that Zoocheak is doing the right thing saying that taxpayers dollars ma ke her suffer, this has gone a bit to far. I think if this zoo wants to get ahead and expand then they should move her and when a new elephant complex is built possibly aquire another heard of elephants. Other opinions?

Ad campaign launched to get zoo to move Lucy
 
If they can come up with the money (which I highly doubt) to build a state of the art elepant complex with other elephants (Who would send another elephant to this zoo in the first place), then I would be fine with her staying

The fact that the only reason there not sending her away is becuase its there biggest attraction shows you how greedy they are being by not giving her a better life

I don't think she should be sent to a sanctuary, but another zoo with a world class elephant exhibit/or will have one

Such choices include

National Zoo
Los Angeles
Columbus Zoo
Woodland Park Zoo
San Diego Zoo
and so many more!
 
The zoo has a full master plan which it can tend to. They have plans to expand the current elephant facility and add additions to it in numerous other ways. I think this zoo could be a great place to house elephants. However I am not saying they should keep Lucy their instead the zoo should say with donations to the zoo it could be possible to see an elephant herd in the future. Or possibly make a campaign to raise money for other animal additions.

If Lucy is sent anywhere I think the best bet would be to the Calgary Zoo. This would mean if Edmontonians wanted to see Lucy they could drive down to Calgary and visit. This would benifit both zoos, the CZ having another icon and the EVZ to focus on other stuff at hand such as new exhibits.

However in the zoos best intrest she should be sent away because they are not gaining anything by keeping her their. ZooCheck though has pushed it to a further level which I think was unessacary because they are making this zoo seem like a horrible place which its not. It may not be a place for elephants but it is for other animals. With what ZooCheck has done went beyond the bar and they are pushing it to the limits.
 
@Quartz92: Edmonton could NEVER be a great place to keep elephants. I was born in the city and lived there for 10 years, and one year there was 8 months of snow! On average Edmonton spends 6 months of the year with snow on the ground, and it is much colder than Calgary due to the lack of warm chinook winds that hit the more southerly city. Lucy the elephant spends 80% of her life locked in her very tiny barn, and the zoo will NOT be expanding the elephant yard. It will simply never happen. The master plan was designed in 2005 and we are a few months away from 2010 and barely a single thing has changed in those years. The one and only elephant rocks back and forth all day long, and the zoo's budget is miniscule and there is barely enough money to afford to maintain the current small collection let alone extra pachyderms. The chance of a herd of elephants being brought into such a cold environment, with a brand new facility, is ZERO and frankly the idea is ridiculous. The tiny Valley Zoo has been trying to concentrate on cold-weather species, and there might one day be an indoor area for tropical animals constructed. As a small zoo focusing strictly on northern animals it might just survive in the future, but a herd of elephants will NEVER happen.
 
I tend to agree with snowleopard that the interest of keeping elefant Lucy at Edmonton has little to do with her welfare. It is really more about zoo politics, in management and municipality.

I would advocate sending her on to a zoo (!!! as opposed to sanctuary), in order to be with conspecifics - even though from a breeding point of view she has alas become a no-hoper -. The challenge now is to find the right zoo for her to be integrated in a herd proper. It will all be a question of elephant spaces and social structure+relationships at the recipient zoos.

Fingers XXX.

K.B.
 
There is a group that is trying to raise money to build the valley zoo (valley zoo development society) The Valley Zoo Development Society - Home The group interest is to raise money to help build the master plan and to make the living conditions better to the animals at the zoo.

Lucy is doing great at the Edmonton zoo. It would be nice to see her with others of her kind but really this is all she knows and have relations build with the same zoo keepers and handlers for over 20 years. She is walk around the zoo every day 2 plus times a day (that is 100x more then other zoos with the worlds 10 star elephant houses) She is check by a the vet every on the regular bases (because it's a smaller zoo) and have her own acupuncturist and gets massages. For the size of her indoor heated building she have the run if it. I was in Calgary and their building was smaller per squire foot for 4 elephants compered with Edmonton's one elephant in her building. Calgary weather is just the same as Edmonton s, some times worst with the high winds (the Chinook winds only happen in late fall and early spring). 2 of the Elephants at the Calgary zoo was rocking back and forth for over 40 minutes and was still doing it when we decide move on.
If she is really that bad off then CAZA would be the ones to demand her to be moved. they said she is well looked after and well be checking in to see how she is doing.

Moving an Elephant is risky. There is a lot of factors to be taken into account like how long is the trip, how is the roads, what well the weather be like, well the elephant stay calm during the trip, ect... If the Zoo decides to move her and something happens they well see the emails and protesters saying that she should have been never moved. If she does not like the new home, other elephants, and can't give her the care she is use too and have to move her again she could not make another trip again, so she would be unhappy for the remainder of her life in an environment she does not like.
I would like to see the Valley zoo bring in more animals to the zoo for the cost they spend on Lucy but they are not going to take the risk of moving her. So I say donate to the development society and help build her the building she needs.
 
The Alaska zoo tried to feed the public the same ******** during the long discussion about what should happen to their lone elephant Maggie. She were too bonded with her keepers, didn`t need another family then them, was happy in the snow, a move were too risky, blah blah blah. I guess some of them really believed this. Look now - she did not only survived the very long trip to California, but is doing wonderfully there, being a full part of their african elephant herd!!
 
I agree with you CritterBlog. I really hope the Edmonton Zoo figures out this problem, but as Snowleopard said the zoo should concentrate on other animals. A few corrections to you post arctic fox. Edmonton gets much worse weather then Calgary. Chinooks happen all throughout the year, with Chinooks comes warmer winds which can be a benefit, they can also bring cold winds as well. I haven't seen an elephant at the Calgary zoo show stereotypical behavior. The CZ may have more elephants per space but Lucy is a loner and as much as you disagree with it for the sake of her the EVZ needs to come up with a plan. If you were the only one of your kind would you be happy?
 
"Thirty of the 78 zoos and wild animal parks that have elephants in North America have only one or two. The Taxon Advisory Group has recommended a three elephant minimum."
 
I agree that Lucy should be moved... and THIS YEAR before the really harsh weather arrives.

If the zoo says she's too fragile to be moved, how is it that they think she can weather the coming extremes of another winter?

AND.. how can they say they have her best interests in mind when she's ALONE? Even the AZA/CAZA states that elephants should be maintained in groups of THREE or MORE...

Lucy should be moved NOW.
 
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