Animal rights protestors rally outside of LA Zoo to call for elephant's release to sanctuary

Animal rights activists gathered outside of the Los Angeles Zoo on Sunday, calling for the release of an elephant who has spent more than three decades in the facility's care. 

The groups, made up of members from Guardians of Los Angeles and Los Angeles for Animals, calling for Billy, an Asian elephant who has been at the zoo for about 34 years, to be released to an animal sanctuary and that he should be freed from what they called "incarceration."

"The few elephants that have been removed from this kind of situation and placed into a sanctuary often will recover mentally and physically," said LA City Councilman Paul Koretz, who joined protestors on Sunday. "After all the years he's spent at the LA Zoo, he deserves to be an elephant near the end of his life."

They say that deaths of two elephants at the zoo over the last year, including 53-year-old Asian elephant Shaunzi, are due to the "unnatural and neglectful conditions and confinement for male elephants" that are part of the reason that the zoo has earned a spot on the Defense of Animals' 10 Worst Zoos for Elephants list.

A Los Angeles city committee voted to send Billy to a sanctuary, but the resolution has not yet been approved by the LA City Council. 

The zoo responded to Sunday's protest with a statement that read:

"The health and wellbeing of all animals in our care continues to be our top priority, and our expert animal and veterinary teams provide the highest standard of care. The small number of activists campaigning to move Billy to another animal holding facility are basing their message on misinformation, untruths, and intentional mischaracterization of the L.A. Zoo elephant care program, and the Los Angeles Zoo categorically disagrees with their characterization of the care and welfare of Billy and Tina."