Free Billy & Tina! Los Angeles Zoo Elephants Deserve A Sanctuary...

Free Billy & Tina! Los Angeles Zoo Elephants Deserve A Sanctuary, Not Another Zoo

 

Animal rights organization Last Chance for Animals (LCA) expressed its strong support for Los Angeles City Councilmember Bob Blumenfield’s motion to pause the relocation of Billy and Tina, the two remaining elephants at the Los Angeles Zoo, to the Tulsa Zoo. Instead, LCA and Councilmember Blumenfield are advocating for the immediate transfer of the elephants to a reputable sanctuary where their complex needs can be met.

Councilmember Blumenfield filed a motion on Wednesday seeking to halt the planned transfer to Oklahoma, urging the City Council to thoroughly review the possibility of sending Billy and Tina to a sanctuary that offers significantly more space and a natural environment conducive to healing the trauma of decades in captivity.

LCA has been at the forefront of the fight to end elephant captivity. Since 1986, LCA’s president and founder, Chris DeRose, has tirelessly championed the cause through litigation, media outreach, and numerous protests as part of LCA’s “Elephant Sanctuaries, Not Captivity!” campaign. A testament to this commitment was DeRose’s powerful act of protest in 2005, when he handcuffed himself to the enclosure of Gita, a female Asian elephant at the L.A. Zoo, to call attention to the unacceptable conditions she was living in.

The L.A. Zoo’s elephant program has faced years of criticism due to its history of confining elephants to inadequate conditions that deny them the space, stimulation, and social structure they need to survive. The zoo is often referred to as an elephant graveyard by animal rights activists, who highlight its troubling pattern of elephant tragedies since it opened in 1966.

Concerns about Billy’s and Tina’s well-being have been repeatedly raised by animal advocates. Both have been observed engaging in stereotypic behaviors like rocking, bobbing, and swaying — signs of psychological distress caused by decades of confinement.

Both Billy and Tina were stolen from the wild at a young age. Tina was born in Asia in 1966, trafficked to the U.S., and placed in a circus at just one year old. She arrived at the L.A. Zoo in 2010. Billy was born in Malaysia in 1985 and came to the L.A. Zoo in 1989.

“Sending Billy and Tina to another zoo simply perpetuates the cycle of deprivation these magnificent animals have endured for far too long,” said DeRose. “Sanctuaries offer the space, natural habitats, and social structures necessary for them to finally live with some semblance of the lives they were meant to have.”

DeRose added, “Councilmember Blumenfield has been a consistent advocate for animal welfare and his motion is a crucial step towards rectifying decades of confinement and ensuring Billy and Tina can finally experience a life of dignity and peace in a sanctuary setting.”

 

Los Angeles residents can take action by sending Last Chance for Animals’ letter to LA City Councilmembers HERE!