Beloved Asian Elephant Reba Dies At Phoenix Zoo At Age Of 51

The Phoenix Zoo is mourning the loss of one of its beloved elephants, Reba. She was a 51-year-old Asian elephant and she was humanely euthanized this week following a recent decline in her health.

Below is a full statement from the Phoenix Zoo:

The Phoenix Zoo community is mourning the loss of Reba, one of the Zoo’s Asian elephants. She was humanely euthanized this week following a recent and irreversible decline in her health.

Reba was 51 years old. 

For many years, Reba has undergone numerous variations of treatments for arthritis and inflammation. Most recently, she has exhibited severely decreased activity levels, decreased mobility, and increasing levels of discomfort. Although there have been some good days, staff grew concerned when Reba chose not to explore her habitat as much as she normally would or be as engaged with her keepers during husbandry routines.

In further assessing Reba’s overall quality of life, the elephant and veterinary team installed cameras to monitor her overnight, which showed her to be inactive and uncomfortable as well. Given her decline, physically, and poor long-term prognosis, they feel they have exhausted all treatment options. The decision to euthanize is never taken lightly and team members have had no shortage of conversations, meetings, efforts and tears in assessing her quality of life and making this difficult decision.

Reba has been a fixture of the Zoo for more than 20 years. She arrived in Phoenix from the Ringling Brothers Center for Elephant Conservation in Florida in 1999.

“Reba is incredibly intelligent and probably most well-known as the elephant who enjoys a fire hose shower during our Winter in July celebration,” says elephant manager Heather Wright. “She has a larger than life personality and is by far the most vocal elephant in the barn; her squeaks, rumbles and trumpets will be missed by everyone who knows her. There really are no words to convey how much her loss will mean to those who know and love her.

“Reba is one of a kind and will be missed beyond measure.”

Reba’s History at the Phoenix Zoo

Reba has been at the Phoenix Zoo for more than 20 years and has been a companion, through from a distance, to Sheena and Indu, 48 and 54 respectively.

While elephants are typically found in herds of related individuals, our females all came from different backgrounds and had shown their keepers through their actions that they prefer to be apart. A dedicated keeper team spent their days caring for, rotating them into the various habitats, performing husbandry and more to ensure the best possible care for our three ladies.

Asian Elephant Conservation

Native to 13 countries throughout South Asia and Southeast Asia, Asian elephants are considered endangered by the International Union for Conservation of Nature due to poaching, habitat loss and human–elephant conflict. Conservation scientists estimate the total population to be between 30,000 and 50,000 individuals. Due to their need for large areas of sustainable habitat, Asian elephants are considered an umbrella species—their survival helps to maintain biological diversity and ecology over large areas.

The zoo has created a memorial page dedicated to Reba with messages from her caretakers.