Thank you for your follow-up inquiry.

All veterinarians we have consulted regarding Lucy are highly regarded in their field and have been chosen because of their expertise, professionalism, and independence from Edmonton Valley Zoo operations and animal care.

To clarify, British elephant expert, Dr. Cracknell was recommended by Zoocheck. At the request of Canada’s Accredited Zoos and Aquariums, he visited Edmonton in 2016. Following a thorough assessment, he concluded it is safest for Lucy to remain at the Edmonton Valley Zoo. Dr. Oosterhuis has participated in Lucy’s assessments since 2002 and has proven a valuable resource for observing Lucy’s evolving health condition. He is highly regarded as an elephant expert. As mentioned in my response to your original email, as we have been researching the panel of experts who will participate in the upcoming assessment, we are considering specialists who have been recommended by advocacy organizations and others, and who we feel would add valuable insights.

Regarding the Jane Goodall Institute of Canada, I can confirm that the reversal of their support to send Lucy to a sanctuary resulted from their review of the experts who performed the assessments including their credentials, a review of their reports, and interviews with some of the experts. I can also confirm that the Edmonton Valley Zoo has never provided any funding to the Jane Goodall Institute nor received any funding from the institute.

To be clear, my statement “if we could safely move Lucy, we would '' is not based on the opinion of one single expert, rather it’s based on recommendations of several experts; most recently from three experts in 2019.

Regarding challenges associated with bringing experts in from outside of Canada due to the ongoing pandemic and border restrictions, I can assure you that this isn’t speculation, rather, it is a real issue. In fact Free the Wild, who has recommended a number of experts who we are considering, advised me in an email in June that some of their vets are not available due to COVID-19.

I would also like to address a few other inaccurate statements made in your email. You reference that she has gone down on more than one occasion due to colic. To be clear, this simply means she lay down and rested. You also make reference to elephant down drills that were conducted with the Edmonton Fire Department. Our team has collaborated with Fire Rescue Services to create an important emergency response procedure to ensure we are well prepared to respond to any incident that may occur. Finally, I'd like to assure you that staff stay with Lucy until late in the day and then return in the morning, often before she wakes up. In addition to that, the elephant house is equipped with video cameras, and Lucy’s care team reviews the evening’s footage every morning to assess her evening activity and sleep patterns.

We look forward to gaining new insights from the independent experts about Lucy’s changing needs this fall, and we will be sharing their reports publicly.

Thanks again for your interest.

GARY DEWAR | DIRECTOR

Edmonton Valley Zoo and Specialty Facilities

CITIZEN SERVICES | COMMUNITY AND RECREATION FACILITIES BRANCH

Saito Centre, Edmonton Valley Zoo | 13315 Buena Vista Road | Edmonton AB | T5R 5R1

office: 780-496-6237 cell: 780-914-9007 | www.edmonton.ca