Zoo mourns death of Joy the elephant
Jeff Bullock, director of the Greenville Zoo, got the call late at night.
Joy the elephant, beloved to zoo visitors since 1977, had died while being transported to her new home in Colorado Springs, Colo.
It happened suddenly, Bullock said, and came as a terrible shock to the two staffers, a veterinarian and a zookeeper, who had followed Joy across the country in case medical attention was needed.
"We were stopping every four hours just to check on her, offer her food and water," Bullock said.
The 44-year-old African elephant seemed fine at their last stop in Amarillo, Texas, so the envoy pushed ahead to Cheyenne Mountain Zoo where Joy would join a herd of four other mature female elephants in an exhibit specially designed for the aging animals.
The decision to move Greenville's last remaining elephant was necessary after Joy's companion, Ladybird, died in March and changing industry standards require zoos to keep at least three elephants by 2016.
"We went through a thorough process to try to determine what would be best for Joy," Bullock said. "She needed to be with other elephants ... and the benefits greatly outweighed the risks at the time."
The logistics for transporting a 7,500-pound animal fell into place Thursday. Joy was given a clean bill of health during a pre-shipment exam. A transporter, whom Bullock described as one of the most well-known in the business, loaded her into a modified trailer, and they left Greenville on Friday.
Zoos along the route were notified ahead of time in the event
At about 11:20 p.m. Saturday, two hours away from Cheyenne Mountain Zoo, Joy was found dead of unknown causes.
The cause of death won't be known until the post-mortem exam report is released today monday, Bullock said. Additional tests may also be needed.
On Sunday, Greenville Zoo visitors and staffers mourned for Joy, who they called Joni. The zoo's Facebook page had 426 comments, many of them notes of condolence, by 6 p.m.
"There were tears and a lot of shock," Bullock said when he announced the news to staff.
"It's going to take quite a while, I think, for them to get over it, just like the community," he said.
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