Panel Gives High Marks To Elephant Program At Buttonwood Zoo

An independent panel of zoo experts has given the Asian Elephant Program at the Buttonwood Park Zoo high marks for its care of elephants Emily and Ruth.

Zoo Director Keith Lovett says the review was recommended by the U.S. Department of Agriculture after receiving complaints from animal activists.

Lovett tells WBSM News, the panel rejected complaints by activists that the elephants were unhappy and antagonistic toward each other. "Not only did the review team spend time with the elephants themselves and reviewed all the records, they also went through all the videos from the animal activists that they say showed there was aggression between Emily and Ruth, and the panel basically said this is not aggression, this is normal elephant behavior," said Lovett.

The panel praised the elephant staff as stable and experienced, and rejected arguments that the elephants should be transferred to an out-of-state sanctuary. The panel said removing the elephants at this stage of their lives was ill-advised and would likely cause undue stress.

Lovett says the review panel was made up of animal experts from across the country and cost the city between two and three thousand dollars.