Debate Over Keeping Maggie the Elephant at the Alaska Zoo

An African Elephant is by no means indigenous to the North America, or Alaska at that. However we do have one at the Alaska Zoo in Anchorage, Alaska. Her natural environment is filled with desert sands and heat. Quite different from her home of snow and cold.

Since I was a young child I always enjoyed going to the Alaska zoo. It is filled with all kinds of unique animals native to Alaska. The brown bear, the black bear , and many different species of foxes and wolves. Like most kids our two favorite exhibits have always been the polar bears and the elephants. For quite some time the Alaska zoo even had a world famous elephant. Anabelle, the painter. Anabelle passed away in 1997 at the age of 33.

On Sunday May 13^th, our last remaining elephant collapsed. Maggie is a 25 years old African female that weighs approximately 7500 pounds. The Anchorage fire department was called in and used straps and a wench to bring her back to her feet. She had been lying down for 10-19 hours.

Due to her enormous size her weight crushing on her body they say there might be more extensive damage. This can include damage to internal organs and breathing difficulty. It may also affect her blood flow. In a few cases this has even been known to lead to death. There are some reports that this might even be colic. However, at this time, it is still too early to tell. They are awaiting blood work to rule out more a more serious condition.

On Monday the 14^th she was up walking and eating on her own. She seemed to be on her way to recovery.

Then on Wednesday the 16^th it happened again. Zoo officials found Maggie lying down once again. They called in the fire department and a local towing company to get her back to her feet. They just cant explain why she keeps lying down without the strength to get back up.

Some reports are speculating that Maggie was seen eating a plastic childs dinosaur toy from a birthday party held at the zoo on Saturday. This could be the culprit. But they are still awaiting test results to rule out all possibilities.

This most recent incidents have once again fueled the debate as to whether or not to move Maggie to a warmer climate.

"It's time to get her out of Alaska," veterinarian Elliot Katz, president of the California-based group In Defense of Animals, said Monday. "The longer the wait, the more this unnatural and abusive environment will cause severe damage to her feet and joints, until it becomes irreversible." as told to NBC's Mike Ross. http://www.ktuu.com/Global/story.asp?S=6528525Friends of Maggie have said "In the wild female elephants never live alone." see: http://www.friendsofmaggie.net/ They state that having her alone in the cement cell is equivalent to solitary confinement.

Due to the long winters in Alaska Maggie is forced to spend a lot of time indoors without proper exercise. Elephants are a herd animal. It is un-natural to have one living alone. She needs to be moved to a sanctuary were she can interact with animals of her own kind.

The Alaska Zoo plans to take up the debate of the moving of Maggie later this summer. The findings of her mysteriously laying down could play a huge roll in her relocation.

All of this was a huge disappointment to us on Monday as I chaperoned my son's kindergarten class to the zoo. Like me as a child all they wanted to see was Maggie, the elephant. Due to her condition she is being kept away from the public. We wish Maggie a safe recovery and hope to see her next time.

Lucky for us we did get the pleasure of seeing the polar bears though. My 2^nd favorite animal at the zoo.

Sources:
Mike Ross "Maggie the elephant needs help to stand again", NBC News URL:(http://www.ktuu.com/Global/story.asp?S=6528525)
Friends of Maggie URL:http://www.friendsofmaggie.net/