Alaska's lone elephant will stay in Anchorage

By MARY PEMBERTON
The Associated Press

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At 9,120 pounds, Maggie could stand to lose a few pounds — maybe more than a thousand, zoo director Tex Edwards said yesterday, announcing a decision to keep Maggie instead of moving her to the 550-acre North Carolina Zoo in Asheboro, N.C.

"Elephants are just like people, they will be as lazy as they can be and still eat," Edwards said.

Maggie, a 22-year-old African elephant, arrived at the zoo in 1983 as an infant when her herd in Kruger National Park in South Africa was culled. She joined Annabelle, an Asian elephant.

Questions have circulated for years about the wisdom of keeping elephants in Anchorage where temperatures can dip to 20 below zero in winter.

But the big question arose on Dec. 14, 1997, when Annabelle died at age 33 of a chronic foot infection. People, including zoo staff, asked if Maggie would be lonely and if she should be moved to another zoo with more elephants. The American Zoo and Aquarium Association recommends that female elephants be kept in groups of three or more.

A five-person zoo committee looked at the Maggie issue for more than a year. Edwards said nine elephant experts were consulted from zoos and animal parks in the United States and Canada. The consensus was that Maggie was healthy and content.

"None of them believed climate was an issue," Edwards said. "They were more concerned about her quality of life and level of activity."

Zoo board members Wednesday voted 8-1, with two abstentions, in favor of keeping Maggie, as long as certain things were done. The improvements, to be completed in two to three years, will cost an estimated $500,000.

Designing and building the first elephant treadmill could cost $150,00 to $250,000, Edwards said.

Elephant keeper Rob Smith has been taking Maggie on walks around the zoo's 20-acre property after hours for exercise.
 
Off-the-ground feeding stations will be built so that Maggie will have to stretch for her food.

Maggie's 1,200-square-foot barn will get better ventilation and a softer floor, Edwards said. Staff time with Maggie will increase from eight hours to between 12 and 16 hours a day.

Board member Anita Pritchard said the panel weighed the pros and the cons of moving Maggie.

"We felt we owed Alaska the right to continue to make Alaska the home for Maggie. She has an adoring crowd," Pritchard said. "The whole community is her herd."

Mary Robinson of Talent, Ore., a member of the "Free Maggie" group, wanted Maggie moved to an elephant sanctuary.

"I am very angry," Robinson said. "My biggest concern is socialization. Elephants, especially female elephants, are social. They have an innate need for other elephant companions."