The director of the Los Angeles Zoo on Saturday disputed game show host Bob Barker's comments about the condition of the zoo's three elephants.
Barker on Friday pleaded with the City Council to close the zoo's elephant exhibit, saying the pachyderms lived in misery and that two of the three elephants were ill.
"His information was wrong," said John Lewis, the zoo's director. "He was making statements that were just factually untrue."
Two of the zoo's elephants, Billy and Ruby, are healthy physically and mentally, Lewis said. Gita has been recovering from an October surgery for a foot injury and has been behaving normally, he said.
Barker stood by his remarks Saturday saying that Gita has had continuous problems with her feet and she continues to stand on concrete and hardpacked soil, which exacerbates her condition. He also said that Ruby is under emotional stress and has started to sway back and forth for hours at a time.