Sabu, the oldest elephant at PAWS, dies at 29

The oldest Asian bull elephant, Sabu, from the animal sanctuary in San Andreas died Wednesday of severe arthritis in his joints, according to a news release from the Performing Animal Welfare Society.

Sabu was born Nov. 1, 1982, at the Portland Zoo and was sold to a circus in 1984. He retired to the PAWS ARK 2000 Sanctuary in Sept. 2010 and joined his half brother, Nicholas, another Asian bull elephant from Portland, who was 17 at the time.

They shared a father, Tunga, who was also sent to the circus, a PAWS statement said.
  

Both Nicholas and Sabu performed in circuses since they were two years old. Nicholas was retired to PAWS when he was thirteen and became the first bull elephant at the ARK 2000 Sanctuary, a PAWS statement said.

“It almost appeared that they knew they were related”, said Pat Derby, PAWS co-founder. “It was obvious that they were communicating, although humans never hear the low frequency sounds that elephants use to gather information.”

PAWS officials are saddened by Sabu’s passing and described him as gentle and very intelligent, a PAWS statement said.

A necropsy was performed by a team of pathologists from University of California, Davis and preliminary results point to severe arthritis in multiple joints.   

PAWS veterinarian Dr. Jackie Gai said the degree of arthritis severity was what one would expect to see in a 50-plus year old captive Asian, not a 29-year-old.

Tuy Hoa, Sabu’s maternal grandmother at Portland Zoo, was reported to have died very young from crippling arthritis, a PAWS statement said.

Television personality Bob Barker, a well known animal advocate and his charity, DJ&T Foundation, funded Sabu’s barn, pool and habitat, a PAWS statement said.

PAWS is a nonprofit, captive wildlife protection organization founded in 1984, and is home to elephants, tigers, lions and bears who were retired or rescued from zoos, circuses and neglectful conditions, a PAWS statement said.

PAWS has more than 100 animals at its three wildlife sanctuaries in Northern California including the 2,300 acre ARK 2000 in San Andreas.