2. Contact the City of Edmonton to express your concern about Lucy’s well being. Calls to the city are logged. They may transfer you to the zoo. City of Edmonton phone hours 7am-7pm MST.

City of Edmonton (The zoo is owned by the city)
In the Edmonton region, phone: 311
Outside Edmonton, phone: 780-442-5311
Email: 311@edmonton.ca
Link to contact form: https://coewebapps.edmonton.ca/contact311/

3. Contact the Interim City Manager– Adam Laughlin. The previous City Manager Linda Cochrane has retired. She was a former Director at the Edmonton Valley Zoo.

Office of the City Manager

City of Edmonton
3rd Floor, City Hall
1 Sir Winston Churchill Square
Edmonton, AB, T5J 2R7
Email: adam.laughlin@edmonton.ca
Telephone: 780-496-8231

​

4. Contact our City and Provincial politicians
Click this link for their contact info: https://www.facebook.com/notes/lucys-edmonton-advocates-project-leap/contact-information-for-edmonton-and-alberta-officials-involved-with-lucy/911998355583579/

RELATED INFORMATION

Worst Zoos List:

--'In Defense of Animals' is a highly regarded animal welfare organization that annually compiles a list of the top 10 Worst Zoos for Elephants in North America.
--For the past 9 years, The Edmonton Valley Zoo has made the list 8 out of 9 years, including holding first and second place four times and also received the dubious distinction of getting a dishonorable mention and placement in the Hall of Shame. It comes as no surprise that EVZ is on the list again for 2019

Recent Veterinary Reports:

As you all know in the Spring of 2019, LEAP reached out to newly hired Zoo Director Linsdey Galloway. Mr. Galloway was receptive to having a dialogue with us about Lucy and discussing possible options for her future. in June 2019, LEAP President Mary-Ann Holm personally met with Mr. Galloway. It was a lengthy, cordial discussion and as a result there was renewed hope that the long standing request to bring in a team of independent species experts to examine Lucy and provide an unbiased second opinion on whether Lucy could be safely relocated to sanctuary, might finally happen. Our hope was based on several commitments made during the meeting and afterwards in emails and phone calls with Mr. Galloway, including:

1) Mr. Galloway’s statement that he agreed species not appropriate for zoo captivity included elephants, primates and orcas.

2) His statement that caring for Lucy's specialized needs is a growing and significant challenge for the Edmonton Valley Zoo.

3) A written statement that he wants to ensure that the zoo obtains fresh information on Lucy’s prognosis and to seek out updated assessments in the coming months by impartial authorities about her condition. He assured us that there would be “no predetermined outcomes” and that he is looking at the new evidence with "fresh eyes”. He also committed to full zoo transparency and has committed to keeping us in the loop going forward.

During our conversations, when it was pointed out to him that previous consultants had made some recommendations that the Valley Zoo never followed up on, he agreed that this was not acceptable. Specifically mentioned were the recommendations from CAZA’s hired consultant Dr. Cracknell, who recommended that EVZ should among, other things:

Aim to reduce her weight to facilitate the osteoarthritis and respiratory support – in the region of 3,600-3,700 kg would be ideal. Lucy’s weight at this time was 3992 kgs (8782 lbs) Lucy’s weight in June of 2019 at 4112 kgs (9048 lbs)
Attempt to develop qualitative and quantifiable methods of assessing oxygenation to allow accurate assessment of respiratory compromise during rest or exercise.

LEAP pointed out that attempts to reduce Lucy’s weight continue to be unsuccessful. In fact, Lucy’s weight has increased since Cracknell’s examination. That her ability to exercise is restricted by climate and space, should be reason alone to recognize that a move to sanctuary would be beneficial to her breathing and arthritis. It should be noted this isn’t the first time EVZ has not followed their own consultant’s recommendations. The regular consulting vet Dr. James Oosterhuis also recommended Lucy have a larger enclosure and rubber matting on the floor back in 2009, but it required a formal complaint to The Edmonton Humane Society in 2011 before either of these were done. The larger enclosure was actually just the exercise tent set-up behind Lucy’s barn and still requires her to traverse through the cold weather and snow to get there. Despite this, the EVZ rejected the offer of an insulated coat for Lucy to use on her walks. https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/edmonton/edmonton-valley-zoo-turns-down-coat-for-aging-elephant-lucy-1.2947098

LEAP reminded Mr. Galloway that there still had been no attempts to measure Lucy’s oxygenation in any capacity despite it being a simple, readily available non-invasive test. A renowned elephant specialist Dr. Susan K. Mikota has stated regarding Lucy’s respiratory condition, that mouth breathing should not preclude her from transport, the important factor to consider is what happens to her oxygenation during times of mouth breathing. Mr. Galloway gave some reassurance that these measurements would be done during these next assessments, but they were not. Yet this is the most valuable piece of information to gauge Lucy’s respiratory status and the risks involved with transporting her.

LEAP provided a list of recommended experts to the Valley Zoo which Mr. Galloway stated was a solid list although he did not select even one of them. The three vets chosen for the recent examinations were not what they were promised to be, for example:

--Dr’s Oosterhuis and Wiedner were not fresh eyes nor were they impartial. They were certainly not independent second opinions. Both vets have examined Lucy in the past and had opined that she could not be moved safely. Both have shown a clear bias against moving elephants to sanctuaries. Dr. Oosterhuis was the only vet out of 11 who said Alaska’s elephant Maggie couldn’t be moved 13 years ago, because she wouldn’t survive the trip. She did survive and is still alive and thriving at Sanctuary. Dr. Oosterhuis became the Valley Zoo’s primary consultant after rendering his opinion about Maggie. Dr. Wiedner in her report made some erroneous negative claims about sanctuaries, inaccurate statements about the life expectancy of elephants and the death of sanctuary elephants after transport. Both Dr’s Oosterhuis and Weidner work in the zoo/circus industry and have made errors in judgement on a number of cases involving sick elephants.

--The third Vet Dr. Leguillette is an equine vet from the University of Calgary. He has no experience with elephants. Mr. Galloway stated he chose him due to “some out of the box thinking” because he was a large animal vet and out of the industry altogether. Aside from elephants and horses being large animals, they have very little in common with each other from a respiratory anatomy standpoint. Considering the goal of these exams was to assess Lucy’s breathing as it relates to potential transport, this was a bizarre choice. Lucy is noted to have an undiagnosed obstruction occluding one side her trunk (nose) causing her to mouth breathe during times of exertion. Horses do not have the ability to breathe through their mouth at anytime. Horses can live and thrive in northern climates while elephants cannot. We are astounded by the inclusion of Dr. Leguillette.

To review the veterinary reports in their entirety, click this link: https://www.edmonton.ca/attractions_events/edmonton_valley_zoo/lucy-news.aspx

To review a written statement about these assessments from Zoo Director Lindsey Galloway, you can do so here: https://www.facebook.com/download/preview/1079375689077361/

To review a more detailed summary of our review of the recent vet reports you can click this link. There is more detailed information about the recent vets on page 3 https://www.facebook.com/download/preview/188885952504064/

The Zoo claims that transporting her would be an “unkindness” and could be potentially sending her to her death. The manner in which Lucy has been kept is an unkindness and will inevitably lead to her premature death. Examples:

--Climate is not only aggravating Lucy’s painful arthritis and cold dry air detrimental to her breathing issues, but also limits her exercise significantly. Lucy spends as much as 2/3rd's of her life inside her tiny barn.

--Loneliness and solitude: Lucy exhibits the typical signs of Zoochosis (stereotypical repetitive movements due to psychological stress from boredom, loneliness and lack of species appropriate conditions).

--No place to swim to allow increased exercise indoors (weight loss), hydrotherapy to relieve painful pressure on her arthritic joints and help alleviate boredom. Most zoos will provide this minimum comfort. Arthritis is a leading cause of death in captive elephants.

--No access to trees, a mud pit or anything resembling a natural habitat.

--Inappropriate unvaried diet and no access to water at all times which will aggravate her symptoms of colic, which has been worsening in the past few years and can lead to premature death. We have noted on several visits that Lucy’s water troughs are empty and that she is given a hose for drinking by her keepers occasionally. Since she is alone for at least 12 hours a day, that severely limits her ability to hydrate as does her diet which primarily consists of hay and dried kibble. Dehydration is a contributing cause of colic. Lucy’s teeth have been in horrible condition and has caused her much pain and it prevents her from being able to chew properly to aid in digestion. This will also aggravate her colic. Dental issues are commonly seen in captive elephants who don’t get a natural diet such as branches and fresh browse to chew on to keep their teeth healthy.

‼️‼️After reviewing the recent veterinary reports, LEAP president Mary-Ann Holm spoke on the telephone with Mr. Galloway to express her disappointment with the vets chosen and the lack of analysis of Lucy’s oxygenation yet again. Mary-Ann asked if the zoo would consider allowing in a few of LEAP’s recommended vets if LEAP covered the associated costs. She assured Mr. Galloway that Lucy would not need to have more invasive testing done again e.g. Scoping of her trunk, and that LEAP’s consultants could just review the films and results already obtained. Mary-Ann again mentioned that Lucy’s respiratory compromise and the potential risk for transport could not be determined without the analysis of Lucy’s oxygenation, which could finally be assessed if he agreed to these additional examinations. Mr. Galloway’s response was an emphatic NO. Mary-Ann mentioned that his response implies a lack of confidence in the vet exams recently done and indicates a concern that they would not hold up to peer review. A long conversation ensued but, in the end, Mr. Galloway would not change his mind‼️‼️

Also, important to note:

The Edmonton Valley Zoo is currently in violation of 4 important standards listed in the Alberta Standards for Zoos and violations to the Alberta Animal Protection Act. Click link for more info:
https://www.facebook.com/download/preview/461492938070592/

Please feel free to message us at info@leapforlucy.com if you have questions and please share any responses you get with us.

We thank you in advance for helping us help Lucy!