Lucky’s birthday exhibit also featured edible decorations. “There’s no glue, things are held [together] with peanut butter and frosting,” said one of the animal care specialists, Candace Gutierrez, during the livestream, which lasted for an hour. The zoo also put out “a plethora of fruits and vegetables.”
Gutierrez provided viewers with a visual tour of the brightly colored bows made from non-toxic paint and birthday cakes that were specially made for the zoo’s oldest pachyderm. She explained that one of Lucky’s cakes was made by the nutrition center and had pineapple tops, whereas another massive cake made of tires was stacked by their driver, Greg.
“The significance of Lucky being 60 years old is very big,” Gutierrez said. The average lifespan for an Asian elephant, like Lucky, is 48 years in the wild, but as Gutierrez explained, “in human care, animals get a lot more specialized care.”
The fortunate elephant, who has been in the zoo from 1962, wouldn’t be able to have lived such a life without the full-time attention of carers. “Their wild counterparts do not live as long because again their teeth wear down, their eyesight changes, even their hearing and their skin is sensitive,” Gutierrez further added.
Lucky was joined for her birthday feast by her fellow female Asian elephants, Nichole and Karen, who were seen snacking on her birthday treats.
Amid the lockdown due to the CCP (Chinese Communist Party) virus, commonly known as the novel coronavirus, the zoo has been suffering financially. “Unlike most zoos in the country, San Antonio Zoo depends 100 percent on ticket sales, guest spending, grants, and donations to operate. With no visitors, the zoo has lost almost the entirety of its income,” Morrow added.
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