Ca. judge orders Knoxville Zoo to report on elephant

Ca. judge orders Knoxville Zoo to report on elephant

April 29, 2004

LOS ANGELES (AP) -- A judge in Los Angeles is giving the Knoxville Zoo six months to report back on the social life of an African elephant named Ruby.

Ruby used to live at the Los Angeles Zoo. When she moved to Knoxville 11 months ago, she was separated from her elephant friend Gita.

So a taxpayer lawsuit backed by the U.S. Humane Society wants to return Ruby to L.A.

They say she's lonely in Knoxville and spends most of her time alone on a concrete floor instead of breeding with other elephants.

Los Angeles Superior Court Judge George Wu ruled Thursday that the Knoxville Zoo has six months to report on how Ruby is bonding with elephants at her new home.

"As far as I'm concerned, it's the first time in America that we've had a Superior Court judge bend over backwards to see if an elephant is happy," said Gretchen Wyler, vice president of the U.S. Humane Society's Hollywood office.

Attorneys for the city of Knoxville say Ruby is doing fine.

Copyright 2004 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.