(Left) African elephant Mikki.
(Right) Mikki grabs the leaves off of a
very tall tree with her trunk.
Steve, along with seasoned
elephant keepers Brian Hettinger,
Brice Patterson and Mark Stocker,
are members of the Louisville Zoo’s
elephant care team. Additional care
is provided by our Curator of Mam-
mals, Jane Anne Franklin, the Zoo’s
veterinary team and outside special-
ists like Dr. Tom Clark, a dentist and
clinical instructor at the University
of Louisville.
Mikki and Punch also have an
extended team of individuals and
groups who combine a love of ele-
phants with the science of elephant
welfare to ensure that Mikki and
Punch reap the reward of first-class
elephant care, directly and indi-
rectly. This includes the collective
experts of the Association of Zoos
and Aquariums (AZA) Elephant
Taxon Advisory Group who utilize
their expertise and connections
worldwide to develop standards for
elephant management and care.*
Mikki and Punch actively partici-
pate in all of their care, enabled by
daily training, trust and a strong
relationship with their keepers.
This care has included visits from
Did you
know?
AZA has made
a strong com-
mitment to
elephant conser-
vation. The Asian el-
ephant is included in the list of
14 focal species for AZA SAFE:
Saving Animals from Extinction.
AZA SAFE takes a collaborative
approach to recognize, pro-
mote and bolster conservation
efforts for selected species.
AZA institutions, including your
Louisville Zoo, have contrib-
uted more than $8.1 million to
elephant field conservation with
$1.6 million directly spent to
protect Asian elephants in the
remnant wild.
a veterinary acupuncturist to treat
Punch for stiffness as she ages, to
the addition of joint health supple-
ments and vitamins into Mikki and
Punch’s cored apple treats
“Elephants are honest — I know
exactly what to expect when I
come in. That comes from years of
experience working with Mikki and
Punc h,” Steve said.
Whether it’s drawing blood for
tests, checking footpads for wear
or giving baths for skin care, the
keepers use positive reinforcement
to invite Mikki and Punch to par-
ticipate willingly in these important
activities.
An Average Day
An average day for Mikki and
Punch includes two aerobics ses-
sions that guide the elephants
through a series of activities that
offer exercise, mental stimulation
and an opportunity for their keep-
ers to check their eyes, feet, skin
and teeth to ensure there are no
health concerns. If you observe one
of these sessions, the keepers may
share insights into the training as
well as some of the challenges faced
by elephants in the remnant wild.
Steve and the team of keepers
also ensure the indoor and outdoor
spaces are clean and safe, and
provide daily opportunities to par-
ticipate in enriching activities that
promote Mikki and Punch’s social
and physical well-being. These
activities may include “shaker bins”
that drop small food items they can
eat, hay nets that hang from trees
and more. These “enrichments” en-
courage the elephants to use their
natural foraging instincts.
Because of her age, Punch is
considered a geriatric elephant, but
she is still very active and enjoys
playing with her boomer ball (see
video online at LouisvilleZoo.org/
elephants). She will often kick it with
her back leg or even chase it into
the elephant pool during hot sum-
mer months. Mikki spends her time
foraging in the exhibit and especially
enjoys pulling the bark and leaves off
of trees. Guests have even witnessed
Mikki bracing her front legs on top
of Punch to grab the highest tree
limbs.
Mikki and Punch’s daily routine
also includes a bath, where both el-
ephants help their keepers by lying
down, since it’s not easy to scrub
two animals over nine feet tall that
weigh close to 10,000 pounds!
The team ensures that Mikki and
Punch receive excellent nutrition.
Each day, the keepers prepare be-
tween 250 to 300 pounds of food
that includes fruits, veggies, grasses,
grains and other treats these herbi-
vores enjoy.
Expanding the Group
As we noted briefly above, one
important addition to Mikki and
Punch’s expanded exhibit in 2016
included the addition of two special
partitioning gates that can be used
to assist with the management of
an elephant calf.
Louisville Zoo Trunkline • Spring 2018 • 9