Much loved American game show icon Bob Barker is also a tenacious animal rights activist who won’t take no for an answer. After taking part in the battle to help move Lucy the elephant from the City of Edmonton owned zoo, Barker is now offering $100K (€71K) to the city council in order to have Lucy’s health assessed by an independent body of elephant experts and veterinarians.
The campaign to release Lucy from the Edmonton Valley Zoo has drawn international attention and ire from celebrities Margaret Atwood, William Shatner and Michael Ondaatje, in conjunction with numerous animal welfare groups including Zoocheck Canada, PETA and Performing Animal Welfare Society – all calling for the release of Lucy into more suitable living conditions.
“It’s crucial that Lucy’s condition be accurately diagnosed before her health deteriorates further,” explained Barker in a statement. “It is indefensible that Lucy has been forced to live in misery for all these years.”
Lucy started her life in the wild in Sri Lanka and was captured as a baby and shipped halfway round the world to end up in the freezing climes of Canada. The brutally cold Edmonton weather is taking its toll on an animal that would normally live in a tropical climate. Lucy is kept in her small barn area when the weather gets below -10°C (14F). Based on a review of weather data from Environment Canada, Zoocheck estimates that Lucy is kept inside her barn as much as 76% of the time. The remainder of the time she lives alone in a small enclosure.
Edmonton Mayor and council members steadfastly continue to refuse to allow Lucy to be examined by independent experts and/or moved to a sanctuary even though, by all accounts (except from the people who profit from the elephant’s confinement), Lucy is living in miserable conditions with numerous health troubles.
Take action to help Lucy here.
Visit: http://www.savelucy.ca/
Via Ecorazzi
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