Ruby was and Asian elephant that made her home in the elephant exhibit at the Phoenix Zoo in Arizona.
One day Ruby's keepers noticed her "drawing" with a stick in the sand of the exhibit.
They desided to try something, they gave Ruby a paint brush, paint and canvus and let her go at it.
Her abstract paintings brought her fame and and brought in thousands of dollars in funds for the Phoenix Zoo.
A couple of years ago the Phoenix Zoo desided to use Ruby's energy for other things and loaned her to the Tusla Zoo to mate with their stud "Sneezy" and she returned pregnant.
The calf was due in late October/early November of 1998 but due to complications during the pregnancy the calf died and Ruby got infected.
On November 6, the Zoo tried to operate to remove the calf and heal the infection, but more complications came up.
When they realized that Ruby would not survive the operation, they desided to put her to sleep.
Ruby, her calf and her amazing talent will be greatly missed by all workers and visitors of the Phoenix Zoo.
The Phoenix Zoo has established a special telephone line to allow the community to express their sympathy.
Friends of the Zoo may dial 602-273-1341, extension 6111. Due to the high volume of calls expected,
they will not be able to return calls, but calls will be listened to by employees and
volunteers on a regular schedule.
More details will be added to this page when found.
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