Aging elephants quietly moved from L.A. to Tulsa Zoo should be in sanctuary, advocates say

NBC News

22-05-2025

LOS ANGELES — Billy and Tina, the last remaining elephants at the Los Angeles Zoo, were quietly moved this week to a zoo in Oklahoma despite pending lawsuits seeking to have them transferred instead to an animal sanctuary where they could live out their days with more room to roam.
The announcement last month that Billy, 40, and Tina, 59, would be sent to the Tulsa Zoo angered animal advocates who argue that they would be subjected again to an enclosure that's too small for aging elephants.
The move came "under cover of darkness," said Jake Davis, an attorney for the Nonhuman Rights Project. Davis said he received reports that the Asian elephants were transferred out about 1:30 a.m. Tuesday to elude protesters who've been staking out the zoo.
The nonprofit on Tuesday filed a petition asking a court to release Billy and Tina from the L.A. Zoo and send them to one of two accredited sanctuaries appropriate for elephants where they would have full-time care and ample space.
"At a sanctuary, they could live as nature intended," Davis said Wednesday. "They need massive swaths of land; they need varied terrain."
The L.A. Zoo said in a statement Wednesday that the elephants "have arrived safely at the Tulsa Zoo" but didn't say when the transfer occurred.
The move was necessary because the Tulsa Zoo has other Asian elephants who will provide important socialization for Billy and Tina because "keeping them in larger groups is crucial for their well-being," especially at their advanced age, the L.A. Zoo statement said. Asian elephants typically live around 60 years.
A move to a sanctuary was considered, but the Tulsa Zoo was the top recommendation based on the standards of the Association of Zoos and Aquariums' Elephant Species Survival Plan, which considers "space, herd dynamics, and expertise of the staff," the L.A. Zoo said.
"This option also ensured that Billy and Tina would be able to remain together," the statement said.
Davis said he expects the Los Angeles lawsuit will be dismissed, but his group will not give up the fight to get Billy and Tina a sanctuary retirement home. He said his team is exploring legal options in Oklahoma. The Tulsa Zoo didn't immediately reply to a request for comment.
A lawsuit filed this month by an L.A. resident sought to halt the elephants' transfer, but a judge denied an emergency motion for a temporary restraining order. That lawsuit includes a declaration by the singer Cher, who has advocated for the elephants for years, the Los Angeles Times reported.
"Billy and Tina have served their time in confinement," Cher said in the declaration. "They deserve the chance to live out their lives in peace and dignity."
The L.A. Zoo referred questions about the court actions to the city attorney's office, which said it doesn't comment on pending litigation.
Los Angeles City Councilmember Bob Blumenfield introduced a motion in April requiring the zoo to explore sanctuary options for the pair. But before the council could act, the zoo went forward with the move, "thwarting public discourse and transparency," In Defense of Animals said in a statement Wednesday.
The nonprofit said the Tulsa Zoo's enclosure is "cramped, unnatural, and harmful to elephant health," with seven animals "jammed into an enclosure less than one percent the size of their smallest natural range."
The Tulsa Zoo said last month that it has renovated and expanded its elephant exhibit, which dedicates 17 of its 124 total acres to pachyderms. A large barn was built in 2024 and an additional 10 acres will be added to the preserve this summer, the zoo said in an April statement.
Zoos across the country have been targeted in recent years by animal activists who criticize living conditions for elephants. Broadly, some elephant experts say urban zoos simply don't have the space that elephants, who roam extensive distances in the wild, need for a normal life.
Some larger zoos such as the Toronto Zoo and San Francisco Zoo have phased out their elephant programs, sending their aging animals to sanctuaries that have far more space.
But other zoos say they are committed to keeping elephants and are turning to breeding, arguing that a sustainable population of zoo elephants will help spur a commitment to wildlife conservation among future generations of visitors.
In New York, the Nonhuman Rights Project filed legal papers to try to free the Asian elephant Happy from the Bronx Zoo but lost in court in 2022. The group then filed similar papers in California to try to free the Fresno Chaffee Zoo 's three African elephants but a judge ruled against the group.