Word: susi
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Nevertheless, the charges sting. The zoo says it is undertaking temporary measures to improve Susi's living conditions, nearly doubling the space dedicated to elephants and replacing the concrete floors with dirt, which is kinder to elephants' sensitive feet. It has also been actively searching for a new companion for Susi since Alicia died. "That's not a solution," replies Garcia about the improvement plans. "[The current condition of the elephant quarters] just makes things worse for another elephant...
...activists behind the Free Susi campaign have taken the zoo's efforts to amplify Susi's living space and find her a companion as evidence that their complaints have had an impact. However, they would like to see the zoo go further. "Susi's condition keeps getting worse," Garcia says. "She's not going to get better unless she's released to a reserve." (See a story about managing elephants in the wild in Africa...
Trepat, however, sees something larger - and perhaps more radical - than concern for Susi in the activists' complaint. "If you look beneath the surface of what they're saying, you detect a certain orientation toward doing away with zoos altogether," he says. (Read a story about why zoos are bad for elephants...
...completed in 2015, the city will have a marine zoo on the shore, and a second, habitat-based zoo for land animals in the urban center. "We're transforming ourselves from the traditional, cage-based zoo to a modern conservation center that teaches respect for biodiversity," says Trepat. Susi's alleged unhappiness may become a weapon to attack the very idea of a zoo for Barcelona...
...Susi a pawn in a larger war? Or is she really depressed? "If she's really eating excrement, if she's displaying rocking behavior, that would be abnormal for an adult elephant in the wild," says Dr. Joyce Poole, director of the conservation group Elephant Voices. At the behest of Libera and FAADA, Poole plans to travel to Barcelona to examine Susi's behavior for herself. But based on her studies of elephants in Africa, she admits to a certain bias. "Personally, I don't think we should have elephants in city zoos," Poole says. "Elephants in the wild...