If these captive animals could talk, what they’d wish for this Christmas is freedom.
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1. Barack
“Santa, can you give me my freedom?”
Barack is a young elephant who was born into captivity at the Ringling breeding compound in Florida. He has been diagnosed twice with elephant endotheliotropic herpesvirus (EEHV), a common killer of young, captive-born Asian elephants. EEHV is associated with stress, and the symptoms include a pale or bluish tongue, swelling of the head and neck, and lethargy. Barack was pulled from Ringling’s show after a second diagnosis and hasn’t been publicly spoken of by the company since. All he wants for Christmas is to be free and bask in the sunlight at an elephant sanctuary.
2. Tootie
“Santa, will you please take me to a reputable sanctuary?”
In Massillon, Ohio, at a roadside attraction called Stump Hill Farm, a chimpanzee named Tootie has been kept in solitary confinement for 20 years. Tootie reportedly spent his early years in the entertainment industry, where he was most likely stolen from his mother as an infant and forced to perform meaningless tricks for the camera. The roadside zoo claims to rescue animals from abuse, but it has been cited repeatedly by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) for decades of animal-welfare violations, including for repeatedly denying animals adequate veterinary care and for failing to provide Tootie with enough space and environmental enrichment. Stump Hill has also leased animals out for cheap TV show appearances—something a reputable rescue sanctuary would never do. It’s time that Tootie got the companionship, enrichment, and care that he needs at a reputable sanctuary.
3. Nosey
“Santa, will you please send me a doctor?”
Nosey continues to be forced to perform circus tricks and give rides on her back for human entertainment, despite overwhelming evidence that she’s suffering from severe arthritis. Her trainer, Hugo Liebel, has been cited with more than 200 animal-welfare violations—racking up nearly three dozen charges just in 2013.
All Nosey wants for Christmas this year is veterinary care for her worsening arthritis and her freedom. Demand that the agency revoke Hugo Liebel’s exhibitor’s license, confiscate Nosey, and give her the best Christmas gift imaginable: a life free from the circus at a sanctuary.
4. Louie
“Santa, will you please get me out of here?”
In the Upper Peninsula of Michigan at a dreadful roadside attraction called the DeYoung Family Zoo, a young, energetic chimpanzee named Louie is being kept in solitary confinement in a small cage. Louie was shipped to Michigan as an infant, and rather than growing up with his mother, he was forced to be a prop for photo opportunities at the zoo. Speak up today and urge the zoo to release Louie to a reputable sanctuary, where he can enjoy companionship, an abundance of enrichment, and space to roam, climb, and play outdoors year-round.
5. Lolita
“Santa, will you take me back to my family pod?”
Lolita has been held in captivity for more than 40 years. She’s currently confined to the smallest orca tank in North America, located at the Miami Seaquarium. Thirty-four years ago, her tankmate, Hugo—who was the only orca companion she has ever known since being kidnapped and taken away from her family—died after reportedly ramming his head repeatedly into the side of the very same tank. All Lolita wants for Christmas is to be freed from her tiny prison so that she can be reunited once again with her family pod in the ocean.
6. Loretta
“Santa, can you please end animal testing?”
For eight months, a witness worked at Florida-based Primate Products, Inc. (PPI), a notorious primate dealer that imports hundreds of monkeys each year and warehouses and then sells them to laboratories. One monkey, named Loretta by the witness, was left penned with the very monkeys who had injured and apparently terrified her for more than 22 weeks, despite at least 23 written and verbal reports to PPI staff that she was being attacked and appeared to be afraid of the other monkeys. Loretta’s face was frequently lacerated, and she had extensive hair loss. PPI has been awarded federal contracts worth more than $13 million—including by the National Institutes of Health, the Army, and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Take action and demand Loretta be given the gift of freedom this Christmas.
7. The Bears at Three Bears General Store
“Santa, can you PLEASE set us free?”
PETA has previously rescued two Himalayan black bears from the owner of Three Bears General store, a cruel roadside attraction in Pigeon Forge, Tennessee, that has drawn dozens of citations from the USDA. The bears were secretly and illegally imported into the state and confined to tiny cages in a decrepit backyard cage. Five more bears remain in a desolate concrete pit at the facility, and all they want for Christmas is to join their rescued friends. Urge Three Bears General Store to do the right thing and send the suffering bears to a reputable sanctuary.
There’s no place like home for the holidays. Please help us get these captive animals’ Christmas wishes to the North Pole by sharing on Facebook and Twitter and help us send these animals home.