said electronic waste is

A lawsuit filed this month by an LA resident sought to halt the elephants’ transfer, but a judge denied an emergency motion for a temporary restraining order. That lawsuit includes a declaration by the singer Cher, who has advocated for the elephants for years, the“Billy and Tina have served their time in confinement,” Cher said in the declaration. “They deserve the chance to live out their lives in peace and dignity.”

The LA Zoo referred questions about the court actions to the city attorney’s office, which said it doesn’t comment on pending litigation.Los Angeles City Councilmember Bob Blumenfield introduced a motion in April requiring the zoo to explore sanctuary options for the pair. But before the council could act, the zoo went forward with the move, “thwarting public discourse and transparency,” In Defense of Animals said in a statement Wednesday.The nonprofit said the Tulsa Zoo’s enclosure is “cramped, unnatural, and harmful to elephant health,” with seven animals “jammed into an enclosure less than one percent the size of their smallest natural range.”

The Tulsa Zoo said last month that it has renovated and expanded its elephant exhibit, which dedicates 17 of its 124 total acres to pachyderms. A large barn was built in 2024 and an additional 10 acres will be added to preserve this summer, the zoo said in an April statement.Zoos across the country have been targeted in recent years by animal activists who criticize living conditions for elephants. Broadly, some elephant experts say urban zoos simply don’t have the space that elephants, who roam extensive distances in the wild, need for a normal life.

Some larger zoos such as the

have phased out their elephant programs, sending their aging animals to sanctuaries that have far more space.At the time, insiders said

would risk lives and. Experts also noted fewer

More changes to the agency are expected, which could include some ofThe agency’s weather service also