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IN DEFENSE OF ANIMALS - TONI FROHOFF Elephants The plight of elephants has never been as dire as it is today, with elephants under siege by humans and threatened by extinction. Illegal ivory poaching, trophy hunting, habitat degradation and capture for public display are fragmenting what remains of the sophisticated and ancient societies, cultures, and multi-generational families of Earth’s largest land mammals. Zoos worsen the problem by selling conservation but diverting precious funds - and elephants - away from the wild, where the only true conservation can take place. In Defense of Animals has a proven commitment toward ending elephant captivity, by influencing zoos and circuses to retire captive elephants to accredited sanctuaries, and by working to keep elephants in the wild to protect their habitats, end live captures, and support true conservation efforts in their natural habitats. Through research, investigation, direct action, political change, and public education, we serve to demonstrably reduce the degree and quantity of physical and psychological suffering of elephants, and to support their well-being, survival and culture.
Cetaceans Human exploitation is harming some of Earth’s most remarkably sentient beings. Dolphins and whales, collectively called cetaceans, are slaughtered for food or snatched from the wild for lifetimes of confinement. In captive facilities they are abused as glamorized commodities, either torn from the wild or bred into a lifetime of captivity, and used as profit-generating objects of entertainment masqueraded as education and conservation. In the wild, cetaceans and all marine life needs increased protection from rapidly growing human-caused threats to their ecosystems. In Defense of Animals is bringing about a world where dolphins, whales and their natural ecosystems are protected and respected, instead of exploited. We defend cetaceans by campaigning to keep them in the wild where they belong, and work to close existing captive display facilities and replace them with seaside sanctuaries where animals can live out their lives in peace. When it is in the individual’s best interest, we advocate for them to have the opportunity to be rehabilitated and reintroduced to the wild.
SUCCESS STORIES: A couple of success stories with photos to promote our summit theme of hope for animals
• IDA collaborated with other NGOs and activists to help end the Ringling Bros Circus' cruel and unnatural transport of elephant performances they were forced to endure (although we are still pursuing a true sanctuary for these elephants).
• IDA also contributed to successful legislative efforts to ban the sale of ivory and to cease the use of barbaric bullhooks on captive elephants in various regions of the U.S. (including, we hope, the state of California; the bill is currently on the desk of Governor Brown).
• IDA has a scientific advisor (Toni Frohoff) on several cetacean seaside sanctuary projects including the prominent Whale Sanctuary Project working to provide the first cetacean sanctuary in the world.
• Received much response from the media including an article bridging the plight of elephants and orcas in Esquire Magazine, Why Elephants in American Zoos may be the new orcas in “Blackfish”.
PROJECTS: IDA’s List of Ten Worst Zoos for Elephants in North America: http://www.idausa.org/campaign/elephants/10-worst-zoos/
IDA’s List of Ten Worst Tanks for Dolphins & Whales in North America: http://www.idausa.org/campaign/cetacean-advocacy/ten-worst-tanks-for-dolphins-and-whales
Toni Frohoff and Marc Bekoff (in press). Ethics chapter in the revised Encyclopedia of Marine Mammals.
WHERE TO LEARN MORE: Cetaceans: Hall Whitehead and Luke Rendell. 2015. The Cultural Lives of Whales and Dolphins. University of Chicago Press.
Kathleen Dudzinski & Toni Frohoff (with Foreword by Marc Bekoff). 2008, 2010. Dolphin Mysteries: Unlocking the Secrets of Communication, Yale University Press.
Toni Frohoff & Brenda Peterson. 2003. Between Species: Celebrating the Dolphin-Human Bond. Sierra Club Books and University of California Press.
Website for the Whale Sanctuary Project: http://www.whalesanctuaryproject.org/
Elephants: Cynthia Moss, Harvey Croze, and Phyllis C. Lee. 2011. The Amboseli Elephants: A Long-Term Perspective on a Long-Lived Mammal. University of Chicago Press.
Website for Elephant Voices, Co-founded by Joyce Poole and Petter Granli: https://www.elephantvoices.org/
Website for PAWS: Performing Animal Welfare Society: http://www.pawsweb.org/
HOW TO HELP: Sign up for email alerts on the In Defense of Animals website or volunteer to assist us. www.idausa.org
!!!!!!!MIS%EDU
CATION!
If#zoos#w
ere#tru
ly#co
mmi1ed#to
#elephant#
conserva
8on,#th
ey#would#re
focus#re
source
s#on##
protec8ng#elephants#in
#the#wild,#w
here#th
e#
only#tru
e#co
nserva
8on#ca
n#ta
ke#place.##
The#te
ns#o
f#millio
ns#o
f#dollars#sp
ent#o
n#exhibits#
could#inste
ad#su
pport#co
nserva
8on#ini8a8ves#in
#
the#wild#by#incen8vizin
g#local#eco@#to
urism
#
communi8es,#a
n8@poaching#ca
mpaigns,#a
nd#
exte
nsive
#habita
t#preserva
8on#programs.#
!!!!!!!!ALTERNATIVES!TO
!CAPTIVITY#
•#Protec9ng!elephants!in!the!w
ild!%!there#are#s8
ll#many#
wild#places#w
here#elephants#a
re#th
riving#th
at#co
uld#
benefit#fro
m#well@fu
nded#interna8onal#in
i8a8ves.#
•#Accredited
#sanctuaries!%!located#in#Califo
rnia#and#
Tennesse
e,#are#se
Dng#a#new#sta
ndard#fo
r#the#ca
re#of#
elephants#in
#cap8vity
#by#providing#sta
ble,#perm
anent#
homes#in
#spacio
us,#n
atural#habita
ts.#Sanctu
arie
s#help#
elephants#h
eal#fro
m#ye
ars#o
f#confinement#a
nd#cru
elty
#in#
zoos#a
nd#circu
ses.#B
ullhooks#a
nd#inhumane#tra
ining#are#
never#u
sed.#
•#Technological!innova9ons#@#b
ring#extra
ordinary######
advances#in
#how#we#experie
nce#th
e##natural#w
orld
.##Zoos#
can#phase#out#e
lephant#e
xhibits#a
nd#re
place#th
em#with
#more#m
odern#disp
lays#
and#humane#m
ethods#to
#truly#educate#and#enterta
in.#
!!!!!!WHY!CAPTIVITY!HU
RTS!
•Cap9vity%induced!health!issues#ca
use#premature#death.#La
ck#of#adequate#sp
ace#and#
years#o
f#inac8vity
#result#in
#extre
mely#painful,#o
Jen#lethal#jo
int#a
nd#fo
ot#d
isease,#
which
#zoos#m
ask#with
#painkille
rs#and#other#d
rugs.##
•Failed!breeding!program
s#have#re
sulte
d#in#elephants#d
ying#in#ca
p8vity
#faste
r#than#
they#ca
n#re
produce#due#to
#high#s8
llbirth
#and#infant#m
orta
lity#ra
tes,#p
regnancy#
complica
8ons,#in
fer8lity,#a
nd#th
e#sp
read#of#d
iseases#like
#TB#and#herpes.##
•Vital!social!bonds!are!broken
#and#family#units#a
re#destro
yed#when#elephants#a
re#
bought,#so
ld,#and#tra
ded#betw
een#zo
os#fo
r#breeding#and#8cke
t#sales.#S
ome#zo
os#s8
ll#
keep#so
litary#elephants#o
n#exhibit,#a
#sentence#of#lo
neliness#a
nd#iso
la8on#th
at#
disre
gards#th
e#m
ost#e
ssen8al#fa
ct#about#e
lephants:#th
at#th
ey#need#to
#be#with
#other#
elephants#in
#order#to
#thrive
.#
•Psychological!traum
a!manifests!a
s#stress@re
lated#behaviors,#su
ch#as#re
pe88ve#ro
cking,#
swaying,#head@bobbing#(th
at#so
me#zo
os#d
isguise
#as#‘d
ancin
g’),#a
nd#other#
behaviors#n
ot#ty
pica
lly#se
en#in#th
e#wild.######
•Lack!of!space!and!ar9ficial!condi9ons#in
hibit#n
atural,#
vita
l#elephant#b
ehaviors.#E
ven#when#exhibits#lo
ok#
natural#to
#visito
rs,#oJen#th
e#m
ost#im
porta
nt#fe
atures,#
such#as#tre
es,#a
re#inacce
ssible#to
#the#elephants#
themselve
s.##
•Cold%w
eather!climates#fo
rce#elephants#to
#live#insid
e#
barre
n#barns#th
rough#winter#m
onths.#
•Elephants!are!coerced!to!perform
!unnatural#behaviors,#
oJen#th
rough#bullhook#use#and#other#cru
el#
dominance@based#tra
ining#m
ethods.
The Conservation C
on of C
aptivity
In Defense of A
nimals w
ww
.idausa.org
WHAT!YO
U!CAN
!DO!TO
!HELP!ELEPHANTS!IN
!ZOOS!
● Don’t#g
o#to
#zoos.#Yo
ur#a
dmissio
n#perpetuates#th
eir#su
fferin
g.
● If#you#have#co
ncerns#a
bout#sp
ecifi
c#zoo#elephants,#e
mail#u
s.
● Stage#or#jo
in#local#demonstra
8ons#a
gainst#e
lephant#ca
p8vity.
● Challenge#th
e#false
#conserva
8on#cla
ims#m
ade#by#m
any#zo
os.
● Sign#up#fo
r#Ac8on#Alerts#o
n#our#w
ebsite
#and#fo
llow#us#o
n#Fa
cebook.
Under!the!guise!of!conserva9on,!!
cap9ve!facili9es!breed!elephants!for!profit!to!restock!declining!zoo!popula9ons!and!to!conserve!9cket!sales.!!N
o!zoo!elephants!have!ever!been,!or!ever!w
ill!be,!returned!to!the!w
ild.!!When!these!cap9ve!
breeding!programs!fail,!zoos!look!
to!Africa!to!steal!young!elephants!from
!wild!popula9ons,!further!
decima9ng!and!destroying!the!
elephant!socie9es!they!claim!to!be!
conserving!and!protec9ng.!In!truth,!zoos!are!consum
ers,!not!conservers,!of!elephants.!
© Francis Garrard
© Michael Brett
Elephants
Suffer
in Zoos
© One World Conservation
Elephants!have!evolved!over!millions!of!years!to!live!freely!in!the!w
ild.!!Earth’s!largest!land!m
ammals!are!intelligent,!socially!com
plex,!emo9onally!
aware!beings.!They!live!in!m
ul9%genera9onal!families!and!share!ancestral!
knowledge!across!vast!social!netw
orks.!They!celebrate!their!births!and!they!mourn!their!dead.!To!hold!elephants!cap9ve!is!to!steal!from
!them!!
their!families!and!their!freedom
,!what!elephants!and!hum
ans!!share!as!intrinsically!vital!to!life.