Free Jumbo
A big mahalo to Adrienne LaFrance for her well-written and informative article (“The elephant in the room,” 1/28), exploring issues associated with confinement of elephants at the Honolulu Zoo, including shorter lifespans and serious health problems.
It is obviously cruel to confine them. Honolulu Zoo elephants have only 6,000 sq. ft. of space. They plan to increase it to 36,000 sq. ft., which is still grossly inadequate. A number of zoos across the U.S. have freed their elephants to live out their remaining years in peace at sanctuaries. This is what we should do. But to the contrary, zoo spokesman Sid Quintal says the Honolulu Zoo is trying to acquire yet another elephant in hopes of “breeding and expanding its collection.” What a backward and ill-informed choice.
From a taxpayer standpoint, the cost of sending them to a sanctuary will be less than the cost of a new enclosure followed by years of veterinary care, food, etc. More importantly, we must do the right thing and not be governed by our own selfish desires to see elephants at the zoo. From many standpoints, it is the only solution that makes sense.
Pamela Davis
Honolulu
