At 5:30am on Thursday, February 9, 2017, Packy, the Oregon Zoo’s 54-year old senior elephant, was injected with a lethal drug and shortly later, he died. Why was Packy put down? We believe as his keeper stated who posted on a dedicated Facebook Page that the decision to end Packy’s life was “..not based on science, safety or Packy’s best interest. It is a risk based decision made by politicians, attorneys and other officials who fear the future repercussions of keeping him alive.”
We are seeking the truth about Packy’s untimely zoothanasia. We have requested clinical records from Metro and will post whatever information we find. We believe that this is a crime and it needs to be investigated.
But as tragic as his death was, Packy’s life was sadder yet. We persisted for eight years to free him to sanctuary. But the zoo and Metro resisted every call for freedom. On Thursday, February 9, that struggle ended when a giant fell.
We are deeply saddened and we will never forget this magnificent elephant who was born in captivity and died never having experienced one day of freedom. But we pledge ourselves to honor Packy’s memory by renewing and reinvigorating our efforts to end the failed breeding program at the Oregon Zoo, halt the importation of elephants from the wild and free the remaining elephants to sanctuary. Our first priority is Chendra. You can sign a petition here.
RIP Packy. You deserved so much more in this life.
