The Phoenix Zoo's Asian Elephants

Thank you for visiting Phoenix Zoo's Elephant Sanctuary website link. Here at the Phoenix Zoo we strive to provide the best lives possible for our elephants. We believe in providing a relaxed environment where the elephants can spend most of their day just being elephants. Our elephants are not pressured to perform, we only ask them necessary husbandry behaviors such as presenting their feet for daily checks and presenting their ears for blood draws. We aim to give our elephants as many opportunities to exhibit natural behaviors as possible. One main way we do this is by offering all their hay in hanging hay nets to simulate browsing. These hay nets also increase the amount of time it takes the elephants to consume their daily ration of hay. We also either hide their treats or present them in puzzle feeders to help increase their foraging time. Elephants in the wild will forage for 18-20 hours a day so increasing foraging time in captivity is very important. Not only does increasing their foraging time keep our elephants busy for more of the day but it also helps to drastically decrease the stereotypic behaviors often observed in captive elephants.

Mission Statement
Meet Our Elephants
Asian Elephant Fact Sheets
Elephant Diets
Behavioral Enrichment
Daily Routines/Husbandry
New Updates
If you have any questions about the Phoenix Zoo's Elephant Sanctuary program or anything relating to our elephants, please contact Heather Wright at hwright@thephxzoo.com.