Members from the Sound Animal Rights Alliance (SARA) are planning to demonstrate outside Fremont Studios on Thursday night. The animal rights advocates are calling for the retirement of Woodland Park Zoo elephants to The Elephant Sanctuary in Tennessee. A press release from SARA says the group is concerned that the zoo’s surviving elephants will begin dying off if not taken to a more elephant-friendly life.
“Their health is rapidly failing from captivity-related diseases”, says Nancy Farnam, SARA’s director. “Bamboo, Watoto, and Chai suffer from crippling arthritis and chronic foot infections, the leading causes of premature death in zoo elephants”, adds Farnam.
The demonstration is set to coincide with Woodland Park Zoo’s annual thrive! fundraiser that begins at 6 p.m tomorrow night at Fremont Studios (155 N. 35th St). Demonstrators plan to begin their protest at 5 p.m.