Philadelphia Zoo Petal Kalie and Bette with bullhooks

Sad

Category:

Pets & Animals

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• Premiere_Elements_4

[animalsrule1231]

I believe that the elephants were quite healthy at the Philadelphia Zoo.

[rowanmorrison]

@animalsrule1231 All elephants showed signs of arthritis and Bette has kidney problems.  The necropsy of Petal showed she had severe arthritis in her hips, elbows, and knees. Arthritis is a common ailment of elephants confined in zoos and circuses but never found in elephants in the wild. Petal's captivity killed her prematurely.

[exploringsurviving]

@ReadSingCare That's what it seems like...but I think just using bullhooks is wrong.

[exploringsurviving]

The elephants were deeply loved, but the management method using bullhooks is wrong. Just using them is inhumane. It doesn't matter how anyone sugarcoats it. It's plain wrong and I'm sure deep down we all know bullhooks are only used purely for the convenience of people, not the elephants themselves. I have seen elephant handlers who do not need to touch elephants with bullhooks to ask them to do things for them.

[rowanmorrison]

@ReadSingCare You need to research bullhooks and "free contact." And also educate yourself on the recent policy adopted by the Association of Zoos and Aquariums to phase out bullhooks. You sound like someone who has simply listened to what the zoo tells you without doing any independent research. Zoos count on such ignorance (and laziness....)

[animalsdeserveaplace]

@rowanmorrison I did not think that 52 was young for an African elephant. I thought that was not exactly at life expectancy, but getting closer. Is it true that she was rather young to die?

[rowanmorrison]

@animalsrule1231 You clearly haven't read the "about bullhooks" page of the elesangels website. You either refuse to get educated or are already educated but live in denial. Either way, it's sad.

[rowanmorrison]

@animalsrule1231 You can believe what you choose (some people believe in the tooth fairy and Santa Claus), but the fact remains that the keepers at all times carried steel-tipped bullhooks, which only inflict pain, to make the elephants obey.

[animalsrule1231]

@gowildlife I think the keepers were obeyed because the elephants loved and respected them, as well as the fact that they got food rewards for complying...a win-win situation.

[animalsrule1231]

@rowanmorrison I have read that the bullhook is simply an extension of a hand, and people who have touched it have said it isn't as sharp as it looks. Still, you may be right. I have also read that keepers prod lightly and never hurt the elephants. And it is also said to be a precaution in case of an accident.