National Zoo euthanizes Kamala, its longtime Asian elephant, for 'poor long-term prognosis'

On the eve of the election and the public debut of tourist-drawing giant pandas still two months away, the National Zoo in D.C. made the hard call to euthanize one of its most popular animals.

Asian elephant Kamala arrived at the Smithsonian-run zoo in 2014, a few years before a different Kamala's national rise, but animal care staff soon noticed symptoms that developed into severe osteoarthritis, giving her "declining quality of life and poor long-term prognosis," the National Zoo said Saturday.

Born in the wild in Sri Lanka but raised as an orphan in captivity, Kamala was believed to be "around 50 years old, which is considered advanced age for this species," the lengthy statement reads. Staff managed her disease with "multi-modal therapies" for several years but in recent weeks "the range of motion in her wrists, hips and shoulders was increasingly limited."

They gave her and herdmates Swarna and Maharani "access to the Elephant Community Center and adjacent outdoor habitat, the grounds of which are flat," but Kamala "increasingly chose to stand in one spot rather than move about," indicating pain meds were failing and worrying staff that "side effects from prolonged use of the medications would be detrimental to her health."

The five other herd members were given access to Kamala after the procedure, the zoo said, giving detailed notes on each elephant's reaction to her body. "Many scientists believe that the process of exploring the body of the deceased elephant is a recognition of the death and is likely part of a grieving process," it said.