Retired U.S. game show host Bob Barker stands beside Lucy, the Edmonton Valley Zoo's Asian elephant, on Thursday. (CBC)
Posted on 09/19/2009 5:20:31 AM PDT by kingattax
Officials at the Edmonton Valley Zoo will not bring in more veterinarians to examine Lucy, their Asian elephant, retired game show host and animal activist Bob Barker was told Thursday afternoon.
"The meeting went badly," Barker told reporters after speaking privately with city and zoo officials. "The zoo is absolutely implacable. They won't consider even saying that when Lucy is feeling well that we can take her to the sanctuary."
At a news conference earlier in the day, Barker called for the zoo to bring in more experts to look at Lucy to determine if she can be moved to an animal sanctuary in California run by the Performing Animals Welfare Society or PAWS.
"We would like to have … a panel of veterinarians examine Lucy and see how quickly she could be ready to travel if she couldn't travel right now," Barker told reporters at the news conference.
Earlier this week, city officials said the 34-year-old elephant would not be moved following an examination by American veterinarian James Oosterhuis. Oosterhuis told the city a move could kill Lucy after discovering her nose and trunk were so swollen it was forcing her to breathe through her mouth.
Despite Barker's pleas, the city's decision stands, Edmonton community services general manager Linda Cochrane said.
"We're not about to be brow-beat by one sanctuary and a body of people that say she has to move," she said.
"We don't believe that it's in Lucy's best interest to have her re-examined by a vet that comes with a point of view that says she needs to move. So we're not going to put Lucy through that and we're not going to have her checked out for something we already know."
Fight may move to courts Barker vowed the campaign to move Lucy will continue, but there was word Thursday that the battle could be moving to the courts.
Barker said animal rights group People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) has retained lawyer Clayton Ruby, a well-known Toronto lawyer, to represent them. While Ruby confirmed to the Edmonton Journal he had been retained to look at legal options to get her moved, he would not say who his client was.
The Thursday news conference in Edmonton was the latest step in a campaign by Zoocheck and other animal rights groups to have Lucy moved from the Valley Zoo.
Barker was joined by elephant behaviour expert Joyce Poole, veterinarian Dan Famini joined Barker and PAWS co-founder Ed Stewart.
Zoocheck's Julie Woodyer questioned the zoo's decision to rely only on Oosterhuis's opinion. Oosterhuis was the only expert out of 11 who recommended against moving Maggie the elephant from the Alaska Zoo in Anchorage, Woodyer said.
Maggie was moved to PAWS in late 2007 where veterinarian Dan Famini said she is doing well.
Retired U.S. game show host Bob Barker stands beside Lucy, the Edmonton Valley Zoo's Asian elephant, on Thursday. (CBC)
Canadian actor William Shatner is calling for the City of Edmonton to move Lucy the Asian elephant out of the city-run Valley Zoo, a major animal rights group announced Tuesday.
http://www.cbc.ca/canada/edmonton/story/2009/09/08/edmonton-shatner-lucy-elephant-zoo.html
I thought this was going to be a long joke. It is.
Somewhere along the line, Bob must’ve raffled off his brains. Anything less than a nickle and the price would be right.
Barker would have coughed up some of his own cash if it was one of his ‘’Barker Beauties’’ he was having affairs with
Why doesn’t Bob Barker cough up more of his own money to pay for these examinations? I can understand that people might be attached to this animal but there comes a point where if you have limited resources, as is the case with most zoos, you just can’t justify spending money if it will not genuinely help the animal.
I’m coming late to this story, but it seems that the main issue is that she lives alone and that is adding to her deteriorating health.
Why doesn’t the zoo get another elephant or 2 (since it seems like she may die soon). If they can’t afford 2 elephants, then they shouldn’t have elephants at their zoo.
What, he can't just have her beamed out?
LOL! Methinks poor Lucy is a reflection of Canada’s health care system.
Good for you Bob. Release that poor creature.
Bob Barker is a fool, who would have thought, eh? Anyone who thinks PETA is actually for animals is a fool.
Zoo death panel says "Take a pill!"
If this was in the USA, Cass Sunstein would be getting that poor elephant a lawyer to represent her! What would be the point in moving an ailing elephant anyway?
Except that in this case, Bob Barker can step in and do something. Us humans will not get such options under 0bamacare.
>>”...animal sanctuary in California...”
The climate might be better for elephants, there, but the smog is not.
Furthermore, California bids fair to be the first State to “go feral.” If so, she may very well end up as elephant tacos.
DG
It seems like Obama care for animals...Only zoo’s cannot raise taxes to pay for health care..
Reduce the activist population...neuter Bob Barker today!
Reduce the activist population...neuter Bob Barker today!
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