PETA Statement: Four Elephant Deaths in One Year Prompt PETA Appeal

For Immediate Release:
December 14, 2018

Contact:
David Perle 202-483-7382

St. Louis –

Below, please find a statement from PETA Foundation Deputy Director of Captive Animal Law Enforcement Rachel Mathews in response to the death of an elephant at Grant’s Farm this week, marking the fourth such fatality at the roadside zoo this year:

A bleak roadside zoo in frigid Missouri is no place for intelligent, sensitive elephants, who are meant to socialize, forage, play, and roam vast habitats in tropical climates. As zoos across the country accept that it’s impossible to meet the complex needs of these animals in captivity and shut down their elephant displays, PETA is calling on Grant’s Farm to follow their example and never again condemn any elephant to a short, miserable life of captivity.

PETA—whose motto reads, in part that “animals are not ours to use for entertainment”—is also calling on Grant’s Farm to be transparent about these deaths by making the elephants’ necropsies (animal autopsies) and veterinary records public.

For more information, please visit PETA.org.