Maggie The African Elephant In Care Of San Andreas Wildlife Sanctuary Dies At 41

SAN ANDREAS (CBS13) — Maggie, an African elephant who has called the Performing Animal Welfare Society wildlife sanctuary in San Andreas home for nearly 14 years, has died.

The wildlife sanctuary says Maggie passed away on Tuesday beneath her favorite oak tree.

Born originally in Zimbabwe, the 41-year-old elephant was captured as a calf - possibly during an elephant cull. She eventually ended up in the care of the Alaska Zoo in 1983 and lived there until 2007.

PAWS took Maggie in - with TV host Bob Barker fully paying for flying the elephant down from Alaska to California.

Barker also fully funded Maggie's care for several years, PAWS said.

Maggie suffered from significant arthritis and dental disease her whole life. While African elephants can often live up to 65 years old in the wild, PAWS says the median life expectancy for them in captivity is only 38.1 years.

Seven other elephants still call the PAWS sanctuary home.