When giddy cars full of children and adults pull up to the Wildlife Safari in Winston, Ore., soapy elephants greet them, spraying water over the hood of the car with their comical trunks and clumsily running a sponge over the windows.
While the scene may seem harmless, People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals begs to differ.
On Oct. 22, Seattle-based PETA sent a letter to the elephant car wash associated with Wildlife Safari, attesting that the business treats its elephant employees immorally and urging the exhibit to close.
The letter, directed to Wildlife Safari Director Dan Van Slyke, claimed that “charging visitors to have their cars washed by elephants is a gimmick that does nothing to foster respect for this endangered species.”
The use of circus-style bullhooks to direct the animals was a major area of concern brought up in the letter, which was written by Lisa Wathne, PETA’s captive exotic animal specialist.
Although Van Slyke did not deny the use of these tools at the park, he said the handlers do not put the animals in the park in harm’s way, always using guides and tethers in a “proper” way.
The Association of Zoos and Aquariums, a national organization that monitors facilities holding animals in captivity, accredited the park in the spring of 1986. AZA regulations state that the association “does not prohibit the use of chains, bullhooks, and electric shock in the handling of elephants.”
The park is home to three adult African Elephants, a threatened species, who are trained and cared for by professional staff who mix wild animal education with entertainment.
“The elephant car wash is a venue that allows the guests to interact with the elephants in a new and up-close manner,” Van Slyke said. “It allows us an opportunity to impart educational and conservation information to our guests as they come through the park.”
University senior Lacey Reddick sees the treatment as unethical.
“It sounds like a gimmick enough just having an elephant at the park, let alone making it wash your car,” Reddick said. “I don’t think they should even be able to own elephants.”
Additionally, PETA expressed concern about the proximity of the elephants to the customers. Wathne requested that the park impose a “protected contact” for the elephants, an agreement they also have for the wild cats at the park. The agreement enforces the use of a physical barrier between the elephant and the customers at all times.
“There’s no doubt that if one of these elephants decided to rebel, being in a car would not protect anyone,” Wathne said in a follow-up to the letter.
The University’s Students for the Ethical Treatment of Animals declined to comment, as they have no official stance on the issue.
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