R.I.P. Happy: Zoo elephant at the center of animal rights legal case is euthanized
The Nonhuman Rights Project sued the Bronx Zoo in 2018, seeking to have Happy declared a ‘person’ for legal purposes and moved to a large animal sanctuary. It was the first such case about an elephant. Citing a principle that’s used to challenge the legality of a person’s imprisonment, the activist group said Happy was ‘an extraordinarily cognitively complex and autonomous nonhuman being’ who was unlawfully deprived of her liberty and suffered from being pent- up in a exhibit without other elephants. New York’s top court ultimately rejected the activists’ claim, by a 5-2 majority. Still, two of the New York high court judges wrote pointed dissents. One called Happy’s captivity ‘inherently unjust and inhumane’ and ‘an affront to a civilized society’.
ASSOCIATED PRESS: Happy, a Bronx Zoo elephant who gave researchers new insight into the animal’s behavior and became the crux of a closely watched animal rights case, has been euthanized at age 55, the zoo said Wednesday.
The Asian elephant was put to sleep Tuesday at the zoo where she lived for almost a half-century. Zoo officials said some age-related conditions accelerated in recent weeks, and she showed signs of a falloff in kidney or liver function. A necropsy revealed arthritis and large, inoperable uterine tumors that are impossible to diagnose in elephants through exams or imaging, the zoo said…
During Happy’s lifetime, zoo elephant exhibits came under increased scrutiny. Some experts said urban animal parks were too small for creatures that roam extensive distances in the wild. Animal rights activists argued that zoo enclosures were no place for big-brained, social pachyderms.
Some zoos phased out their exhibits and sent elephants to sanctuaries, though some other zoos remain committed to keeping and breeding the creatures, arguing that they help keep people interested in saving wildlife…
One activist group, the Nonhuman Rights Project, sued the Bronx Zoo in 2018, seeking to have Happy declared a “person” for legal purposes and moved to a large animal sanctuary. It was the first such case about an elephant, according to the group.
Citing a principle that’s used to challenge the legality of a person’s imprisonment, the activist group said Happy was “an extraordinarily cognitively complex and autonomous nonhuman being” who was unlawfully deprived of her liberty and suffered from being pent up in a exhibit without other elephants.
Zoo officials said Happy was assiduously cared for and had space for swimming, foraging and other natural behavior. Uprooting her from her longtime home could harm her, the zoo said.
New York’s top court ultimately rejected the activists’ claim, by a 5-2 majority. Colorado’s highest court later issued a similar ruling about five elephants in a zoo there.
Still, two of the New York high court judges wrote pointed dissents. One called Happy’s captivity “inherently unjust and inhumane” and “an affront to a civilized society.”
The Nonhuman Rights Project has continued pursuing cases about elephants in various other states. SOURCE
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