This month marks the 10th anniversary of Zoocheck’s campaign to secure the release of the Toronto Zoo’s last three surviving elephants (Toka, Thika and Iringa) and their subsequent 4,300 km transport to the PAWS sanctuary in California. Our campaign attracted a great deal of attention in Canada and around the world and we’re extremely pleased it was successful.
Zoocheck’s Julie Woodyer did an amazing job guiding this exceedingly complex campaign with its hundreds of moving parts and seemingly endless stream of political and practical challenges, toward the goal of moving the elephants to a better life. It would take an entire book to describe the politics alone.
In addition to navigating the multitude of political issues, the practical issues to be dealt with were voluminous as well. They included developing the transport plan, hiring the trucks, assembling an expert transport team, building the elephant crates, acquiring custom heaters, getting massive weatherproof crate covers made, designing and installing a transport monitoring system, acquiring all the necessary permits and attending to a thousand other tasks to make it happen. Starting with virtually no support and what seemed to be an impossible goal, we methodically pushed forward dismantling each obstacle and taking care of each task until, approximately two years later, on October 17, 2013, the elephants were finally on their way.
Most people don’t know that Zoocheck faced persistent, very fierce opposition to the move by a multitude of zoo supporters and staff, zoo associations, the Elephant Managers Association and others all trying to prevent the move right up to the day the elephants were on their way. All kinds of ridiculous claims were made, such as the elephants would all die in transport, that the sanctuary was infested with disease and more. And Zoocheck was ruthlessly criticized time and time again. While we were driving the elephants south, during a midnight break at the world’s largest truck stop in Idaho, we even had state police show up because they had received a complaint about an “illegal elephant shipment.” They soon learned the truth, were fascinated by the elephants and the convoy and wished us well on the rest of our journey. After approximately three days on the road, we arrived in California.
Arriving at PAWS
Today, Toka and Thika enjoy climbing steep hills, grazing in open pastures, foraging in the trees, rolling in the earth, swimming in the lake and basking in the sunshine. 
Sadly, Iringa’s history of degenerative joint and foot disease – the leading cause of death for elephants in zoos – caught up with her and she was humanely euthanized on July 21, 2015. She was born in the wild but spent most of her life in zoo captivity, so we are so pleased we were able to give her a chance to roam the hills, eat natural vegetation and do some of things elephants should do during the time she had left.
While Zoocheck led the entire campaign, a lot of friends and colleagues helped make it happen. Our thanks go out to former Toronto City Council members Michele Berardinetti, Glenn De Baeremaeker and Raymond Cho, current Council member Shelley Caroll, lawyers Doug Christie, Richard Bickelman and Clayton Ruby and activists Gert Zagler, Steve Gordon and Linda Bronfman.
Helping make the transport possible was W.S. Bell Cartage, Infogate Computers Inc., Howard Smith, JSW Manufacturing Inc. W.D. Boat Tops and Interiors and Superior Crane. Our fantastic elephant who made the journey south with the elephants included Margaret Whittaker, Scott Blais, Patrick Lampi, Joel Parrot, Jeff KInzley, Andrea Goodnight, Lisa Worgan and Zoocheck director Rob Laidlaw.
Special thanks go out to animal advocate/television celebrity Bob Barker (RIP), esteemed activist Nancy Burnet and last, but not least, Pat Derby and Ed Stewart, the co-founders of the PAWS sanctuary, a place the Toronto elephants could call home.
Some of Zoocheck’s other current and past efforts to help elephants
- Currently supporting the passage of the Jane Goodall Act that, if passed, will facilitate a phase out of captive elephants in Canada.
- Lobbied in dozens of jurisdictions throughout Canada to stop the abuse of elephants in circuses and traveling shows.
- Raised $150,000 to support and outfit with gear, fuel and other necessities, anti-poaching patrols in Kenya to protect elephants and other wildlife.
- Provided funding in support of aerial anti-poaching patrols to protect elephants, rhinos and other wildlife in Lower Zambezi National Park, Zambia.
- Conducted the first ever national review of elephants in Canadian zoos in 2005.
- Secured the release of Tina the elephant from the Greater Vancouver Zoo and her transfer to The Elephant Sanctuary in Tennessee.
- Worked for more than 15 years to help Lucy, the Edmonton Valley Zoo’s socially isolated Asian elephant, including six court actions, multiple expert reviews and a broad range of other investigative, lobbying and public awareness activities. While this campaign led to one of Canada’s most important pieces of jurisprudence for animals, sadly, the zoo and the City have steadfastly refused to move Lucy to more appropriate conditions elsewhere.
- Promoted the Elephant Protection Act, a private member’s bill that would have protected elephants in entertainment in Ontario.
- Provided significant assistance and support to regional organizations working to relocate elephants Chai and Bamboo from the Woodland Park Zoo in Seattle to more appropriate accommodation elsewhere.
- Funded travel costs for expert elephant consultants and leading scientists to conduct training workshops and attend key international meetings relevant to the welfare of elephants in captivity.
- Partnered with US-based Elephants in Japan NGO to conduct first ever investigative review of solitary elephants in Japanese zoos, publication of seminal report on the issue and subsequent lobbying initiatives in Japan.
