Oakland Zoo mourns the death of an African Elephant

Lisa, an elderly African Elephant at Oakland Zoo, was humanely euthanized after several years of chronic and degenerative health issues. Her condition was irreversibly worsened recently after she developed ventral edema, according to the zoo, in Oakland, California.

“We are heartbroken. Over the years-long course of care and treatments to provide her a good quality of life through multimodal pain control, her disease progressed to a point where we didn’t want her last day to be her worst day, and it was time to do the most humane thing and to let her go. This was the best thing for Lisa, but the most painful and heart-wrenching for all her zoo family and the Bay Area community that has loved her for decades,” said Alex Herman, BS, DVM, vice president of veterinary services at Oakland Zoo, in an organizational release.¹

Lisa the elephant (Image courtesy of Oakland Zoo)

Lisa first arrived at the Oakland Zoo in 1979, and she was only 1 of 16 female African elephants her age—46 years—or older in AZA-accredited zoos at the time of her death. According to the release,¹ as she grew older, she began developing age-related afflictions such as eye ulcers, progressing degenerative arthritis, foot and nail lesions, and ventral edema, which caused excessive fluid retention in her stomach. The excessive fluid then caused external and internal vaginal ulcers.

Lisa’s care team at the Oakland Zoo included veterinarians from the Oakland Zoo and other AZA-accredited zoos, animal care staff, and specialists such as ophthalmologists, physical therapists, arthritis researchers and specialists, and wildlife behaviorists to create a care plan. Her plan included pain medication, cryotherapy, laser treatments, physical therapy, and daily foot soaks in Epsom salt.

The zoo even performed cutting-edge stem cell producers on Lisa in October 2022 and January 2023 in partnership with Michigan State University researchers and veterinarians. This procedure had some improvements on her mobility, but her limbs and joints were still stiff and continued to decline as the winter months went on.

The staff at the zoo are mourning the loss of Lisa, especially after the zookeepers celebrated her 46th birthday with her by giving her treats, enrichment, and pinatas packed with her favorite fruits.

“Lisa has been a deeply beloved part of our Oakland Zoo family since 1979. She was truly special to me, and to all of us here. Her loss is felt by so many, especially her closely bonded elephant keepers. We’ll miss her greatly,” expressed Colleen Kinzley, vice president of animal care, conservation, and research at Oakland Zoo, in the release.¹

Following her death, Lisa was transported to the UC Davis School of Veterinary Medicine for a necropsy.

Reference

Oakland Zoo Mourns Loss of African Elephant, Lisa, Age 46. News release. Oakland Zoo. March 27, 2023. Accessed March 27, 2023.