Detroit Zoo to Free Elephants on Ethical Grounds
“The Detroit Zoo will become the first major zoo to stop exhibiting elephants on ethical grounds because they can develop arthritis and stress-related ailments in captivity, officials said on Thursday.”

In the wild, elephants roam vast areas, live in large families, and exhibit some of the same social traits as humans such as forming friendships and mourning for their dead. “Elephants seem to be intelligent and even social in ways that are similar to humans,” Kagen said. “Elephants can suffer from similar things to what we suffer from when we’re in difficult environments.”

Confined to zoos and circuses, elephants develop physical problems and neurotic behaviors such as rocking back and forth and aggressive behavior, he said. “If we don’t feel like we can (keep elephants), then the question is, who can and how?,” he said. “For us, there really is a big question about whether elephants should be in captivity at all.”

(via chapel perilous)