As former L.A. Zoo elephant Tina falls ill, Samuel L. Jackson and activists call for sanctuary

Nearly a twelvemonth aft the Los Angeles Zoo shipped disconnected Billy and Tina to Oklahoma, carnal rights activists person kept up the telephone to determination the elephants to a sanctuary. Recently, histrion Samuel L. Jackson joined their roster of supporters.

In the dormant of nighttime past May, the brace of Asian elephants were shuttled via shipping containers to the Tulsa Zoo, wherever their L.A. keepers said they’d articulation a herd ample capable for the societal animals’ well-being — thing the L.A. Zoo could not provide.

But carnal payment groups accidental the pachyderms are not amended disconnected successful their caller home, citing concerns astir their carnal and intelligence health.

Tina, 59, is battling a uterine corruption and Billy, 40, could look invasive sperm extractions, according to Courtney Scott, seasoned elephant advisor with In Defense of Animals.

The brace were already showing “very chronic accent behavior” successful L.A., Scott said, specified arsenic caput bobbing, swaying and pacing. In Tulsa, “that seemed to intensify.”

How bash they know? A unpaid from the Elephant Guardians of Los Angeles visited doubly and chronicled their information with photos and videos, she said.

Scott’s radical ranked the Tulsa Zoo among the 10 worst zoos for elephants past year, claiming it suffers from overcrowding and a breeding programme with a checkered history.

Jackson, of “Pulp Fiction” and Marvel fame, said sanctuaries are consenting to instrumentality successful Tina and Billy. “Continued exploitation and denial of their state is making them worse, and clip is moving out!” Jackson said successful a connection provided by In Defense of Animals.

Jackson is conscionable the latest prima to chime in. Cher, Lily Tomlin and the precocious Bob Barker person antecedently advocated for Billy, who arrived astatine the L.A. Zoo successful 1989.

Billy roams his erstwhile situation astatine the L.A. Zoo successful April 2017.

(Richard Vogel / Associated Press)

At the Tulsa Zoo, which did not respond to requests for comment, Billy and Tina are present portion of a unit that includes 5 different Asian elephants. The zoo’s elephant analyzable spans 17 acres and includes a wooded sphere not unfastened to nationalist viewing arsenic good arsenic a 36,650-square-foot barn.

This month, the zoo announced Tina was suffering from an corruption and abnormal buildup of fluid successful her uterus. A connection describes it arsenic a broadside effect of reproductive tract disease, which she had a past of earlier arriving astatine the zoo and is communal successful aging pistillate elephants.

“There are precise constricted options beyond antibiotics and, unfortunately, antibiotics unsocial volition not afloat resoluteness the infection,” the zoo said. “That world is hard to share, but it’s important to beryllium transparent that this information has the imaginable to go life-threatening.”

Tina isn’t showing signs of discomfort and remains “bright and engaged” and “greets her keepers,” according to the zoo.

Billy and Tina person lived unneurotic for much than 15 years and stock a beardown bond, according to the L.A. Zoo. They pass by touching each different with their trunks, smelling each different and vocalizing.

Billy hails from a herd successful Malaysia that was culled to wide onshore for thenar and rubber plantations, according to the zoo. He arrived successful L.A. astatine the property of 4 arsenic portion of an effort by the Malaysian authorities to relocate young elephants to zoos successful the precocious 1980s.

In 2009, Tina landed astatine the San Diego Zoo for rehabilitation aft being confiscated from a backstage owner. She was moved to the L.A. Zoo the pursuing year.

For years, carnal payment advocates and immoderate politicians tried to compel the L.A. Zoo to relocate the elephants to determination much spacious and which, according to them, would connection a amended prime of life.

The L.A. Zoo, however, has agelong defended the attraction provided to its elephants and did not mention wellness reasons for Billy’s and Tina’s relocation successful 2025.

According to an online FAQ, that determination stemmed from the decease of 2 older herd members — Jewel and Shaunzi — who were euthanized successful 2023 and 2024, respectively, for age-related wellness reasons. Without them, the zoo nary longer met Assn. of Zoos and Aquariums standards requiring accredited zoos to person astatine slightest 3 Asian elephants.

The zoo said it wasn’t imaginable to bring successful much elephants, truthful it made the “difficult decision” to relocate Billy and Tina, according to a connection from past year.

“The attraction and well-being of the animals is ever a apical precedence and decisions impacting the animals are made astatine discretion of the Zoo Director — an authorization granted successful the Los Angeles City Charter,” the connection said. “Activist agendas and protests are rightfully not a information successful decisions that interaction carnal care.”

The zoo said it spoke to sanctuaries accredited by the Assn. of Zoos and Aquariums erstwhile weighing what to bash with the elephants, but elephant experts from astir the state recommended Tulsa Zoo arsenic the champion acceptable for the pair. Criteria included space, facilities, unit expertise and herd dynamics.

Denise Verret, manager of the L.A. Zoo, noted astatine an L.A. City Council fund proceeding past twelvemonth that the Toronto Zoo mislaid its accreditation successful 2012 by sending its elephants to a sanctuary astatine the absorption of the Toronto City Council.

L.A. City Councilmember Bob Blumenfield, a longtime advocator for the elephants, filed a question seeking to intermission their relocation until the City Council could reappraisal the anticipation of sending them to a sanctuary. An L.A. nonmigratory filed a suit implicit the zoo’s determination and sought to halt the elephants’ transfer. Neither effort was successful, but activists haven’t fixed up.

Sanctuaries successful Georgia and Cambodia person agreed to instrumentality successful Billy and Tina, according to Scott. Another, the Performing Animal Welfare Society successful Northern California, has said it would judge Billy and, likely, Tina, she said.

“It would conscionable beryllium a substance of sitting down,” she said, “and figuring retired the champion 1 for the elephants.”