SALT LAKE CITY — In a surprise announcement, officials at Utah's Hogle Zoo announced Tuesday that they will pause elephant care at the attraction and will soon move their animals to other locations.
The zoo said it is pausing its continuous care of the animals that began over 100 years ago. With the change, the zoo's current elephants, Christie, 36, and her daughter, Zuri, 13, will be relocated together to another accredited zoo "where opportunities for them to grow their family may increase," Hogle Zoo posted to their website.
According to zoo officials, the announcement comes after determining what was best for the elephants in talks with consultants, professionals and members of the community. It will allow the elephants to join a larger herd and have the opportunity for offspring.
"The ultimate choice to move Christie and Zuri is to provide them both the best chance to have a calf in the important social dynamic of a multigenerational herd," the zoo said.
“Zuri really has a limited window for her to go and have her first offspring," said Liz Larsen, the zoo's vice president of programs. "So there's an urgency to this.”
13-year-old Zuri needs to be at a zoo that has male elephants while she’s in her prime reproductive years, she said.
“Their populations are declining," said Larsen. "Approximately 100 elephants are killed every day. Elephants are very social animals, and they live in extended families, so it's really in the best interest of Zuri and Christie and their well-being that they have an opportunity to grow their own family.”
Visitors come from all over the state to meet Christie and Zuri.
“Elephants are in every children's animal book," said Katie Gomez, a zoo visitor. "We practice making the sound, but seeing them in person is like, they're larger than life.”
Although Utahns are sad to lose the elephants, they understand why they need to find a new home.
“It’s kind of disappointing, just because the kids love to see them," said Gomez. "It's something that they don't get to see in real life very often, but ultimately, if it's best for the animals, I'm happy to see them have that best thing.”
In 2020, a group demanded the zoo shut down its elephant exhibit, telling the Salt Lake Tribune that “holding elephants in small, unnatural groupings is one of the worst cruelties imaginable for this social species."
Dari, a 55-year-old elephant, was euthanized in August 2018 after she was found lying on the ground in the exhibit.
As it is calling the move a pause, the zoo will evaluate what it would need to do to ensure the well-being of its animals, along with costs and guest impact, before deciding whether to have elephants return to the attraction.
Hogle Zoo first welcomed its first elephant, Princess Alice, nearly 100 years ago and acknowledge that guests love watching the animals.
"Many experts and animal keepers all weighed in on this decision and believe it is the best thing for them. The elephants will be missed by the staff and by our guests and community," the zoo posted on its site.
The Hogle Zoo will coordinate with the Association of Zoos and Aquariums' African Elephant Species Survival Plan. They should know where the elephants will be going by this fall, so Utahns have all summer to say goodbye to Zuri and Christie. The zoo still working on its master plan, which includes deciding if elephants will one day return.
