Philadelphia Zoo - One Year Later, I Still Miss the Elephants

After almost 150 years of exhibiting elephants, and even though the exhibit met AZA standards, the Zoo determined it did not have enough space or resources to continue to exhibit elephants.

The last two elephants, Bette and Kallie, left the Zoo on the evening of July 9, 2009, and the Zoo closed the elephant exhibit.

Every time I see the LEGO penguins that are set up in the area that used to be the pool the elephants splashed in, I feel a deep loss. Not just for myself, but for all those Philadelphia Zoo visitors who won't feel that wonderful sense of awe humans feel when they are close to real live elephants.

In 1969, I moved to Philadelphia to be near the Philadelphia Zoo, which was in my opinion, one of the very best zoos in the world.

Now, I am starting to wish I had moved to Houston, or Memphis, or Cincinnati, or ... well, the list goes on and on because almost all other big-city zoos decided to keep their elephant exhibits open and slowly expand and improve the exhibits as resources became available.

Category:

Pets & Animals

Tags:

• Philadelphia Zoo
• zoos
• elephant
• LEGO
• 2010
• 2009
• opinion

[pugglefeet]

Aww. Nice to see Bette and Kallie again. r.i.p. Pedal. I believe they are in an elephant sanctuary near Pittsburgh.

[ZooVisitorMM]

@pugglefeet The Pittsburgh Zoo's International Conservation Center is not a sanctuary. It is a breeding center that is not open to the public. Bette is still there, but Kallie was relocated again last November, this time to the Cleveland Metroparks Zoo.

[musicalsteve82]

What happened to this place? First they get rid of the chimps, then replace the sea lions with ducks, then they replace the elephants with donkeys?! This zoo needs an expansion. It isn't a zoo without the elephants.

[ZooVisitorMM]

@musicalsteve82 The entire Pachyderm House is being converted into a Children's Zoo/Education Center, in spite of the objections of many people like me who think giving children the opportunity to see elephants and other wild creatures is far more educational and appropriate in a zoo than giving them the opportunity to see ducks, geese, chickens, goats and donkeys.

[musicalsteve82]

@ZooVisitorMM So I heard. Hopefully, they'll get the common sense to build an elephant exhibit where the old children's zoo was.

[ZooVisitorMM]

@musicalsteve82 Common sense does not seem to be prevailing in the Philadelphia Zoo at this time.

[ZooVisitorMM]

@ReadSingCare The kind of zoo that does that is a zoo that is slowly transforming into something other than a zoo - into a combination amusement park/entertainment center/education center/environmental center. Anyone who doesn't like that needs to protest. I know I don't like it. That's why I have been protesting! I want the Philadelphia Zoo to be a ZOO. Not Disney World. Not Sesame Place. Not a wildlife conservation society. Not an extension of local colleges. Just a zoo.

[ZooVisitorMM]

@carlnix30 I haven't noticed any dirty or stinking exhibits. I think you probably saw some of the exhibits before the keepers had a chance to clean them for the day. (Some animals are very messy.) My problem is not with any of the animal care. I think the keepers and vets do a wonderful job of caring for the animals. But I do agree that the limited funding should be put to better use. I especially don't like seeing ANY money being spent on attractions like LEGOs or Jim Henson puppets.

[carlnix30]

It's a shame what they have done with the Philadelphia zoo!! Combining exhibits missing or sick animals! Dirty or stinking exhibits! It seems like only the sponsored exhibits are maintained. I went yesterday with my family and even the duck exhibit was dry with some of the ducks combined with the penguins! Who has their hands in the cookie jar of the limited funding?

[canucksgo]

They did the right thing