Point Defiance Zoo remembers beloved elephant ‘Suki’

TACOMA, Wash. — On Saturday, Point Defiance Zoo & Aquarium (PDZA) said goodbye to “Suki” an elderly Asian elephant, after she was euthanized due to a steady decline in health over the past few weeks.

Suki, a former circus elephant, at age 60 was one of the oldest members of the zoo, spending nearly three decades connecting with staff and visitors.

“We lost a special member of our zoo family yesterday and our staff and community are grieving,” said Zoo Director Alan Varsik. “Suki’s long life says a lot about the high quality of care she received over the 28 years that Point Defiance Zoo was her home.”

Suki far surpassed the 48-year average life expectancy of a female Asian elephant and Varsik contributed it to the quality of care she received.

But recently, Suki began to decline cognitively and was often observed in discomfort.

PDZA believed it was possible that she may have had a stroke or suffered from other neurological diseases and made the decision to euthanize Suki after she refused care.

Suki was diagnosed with tuberculosis in 2019, suffered from chronic arthritis and had uterine tumors before her current ailments.

“With Suki’s advanced age, chronic medical conditions, and significant decline in health, humane euthanasia was the only compassionate course of action,” said Dr. Karen Wolf, the zoo’s head veterinarian.

“She lived a long, full life and was an exceptional ambassador for her species,” said Malia Somerville, the zoo’s general curator. “Millions of our guests connected with her and that connection inspired them to care deeply about elephants and to help protect them in the wild. We’ll continue to celebrate Suki’s life and honor her contribution to her species through our support of elephant conservation in Sumatra.”

To learn more about donating to elephant conservation in honor of Suki, click here.

More photos, a video and details about Suki can be found on the PDZA blog.

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