Little Mac, the Santa Barbara Zoo’s 48-year-old Asian elephant, was euthanized Wednesday night in her exhibit yard, surrounded by her keepers. She’d been receiving hospice care over the last week following a bout of colic in June that she never fully recovered from. Little Mac’s body was removed by crane to a truck and taken to the California Animal Health & Food Safety Laboratory in San Bernardino, which is run by UC Davis, where the necropsy will be performed.
The decision to euthanize “was made due to her declining condition as a result of her ongoing medical issues, some of which were common in geriatric elephants, and some new medical problems that had developed since June,” the S.B. Zoo said in a statement. Early last week, keepers noticed a change in the color of Little Mac’s dung. Tests indicated there was bleeding in her intestines. The S.B. Zoo consulted with well-respected elephant veterinarians Dr. Dennis Schmitt in Missouri and Dr. Ellen Weidner in Florida, several veterinarians from San Diego Zoo Global, and local equine veterinarians about her treatment options and prognosis. But no diagnosis was reached.
“She continued to decline in spite of our best efforts,” said Dr. Julie Barnes, the S.B. Zoo’s vice president of animal care and health. “We had exhausted the medical options available that would allow her to have a good quality of life. It was time to let her go.”