Bob Barker spent nearly $1 million to move three Toronto Zoo elephants to California; how Iringa, Toka and Thika found a new home

When three ageing African elephants left Toronto Zoo in October 2013 after years of debate over their future, television host Bob Barker was waiting in California to welcome them. The former host of The Price Is Right had reportedly spent nearly $1 million to fund their journey to a sanctuary, hoping to give Iringa, Toka and Thika a different life away from their zoo enclosure. The Los Angeles Times reported on October 23, 2013, that Barker watched the elephants arrive at the Performing Animal Welfare Society's (PAWS) ARK 2000 sanctuary in San Andreas, California, visibly moved by the moment.“I had a lump in my throat, I had tears in my eyes,” Barker said at a news conference after the animals arrived, according to the Los Angeles Times. For the veteran television personality, the relocation was the culmination of a campaign that had lasted years and involved animal-welfare advocates, zoo officials and Toronto's city council.A campaign that took yearsThe decision to move the elephants was not made overnight. In May 2011, Toronto Zoo's board voted to close its elephant exhibit and relocate its remaining elephants to an appropriate facility. The move was part of a wider debate about ...