Saying Goodbye To The Louisville Zoo's 3-Year-Old African Elephant Fitz | A Look Back Over His Life

This is a video that is very hard for me to do. The Louisville Zoo tragically lost its 3-year-old African Elephant Fitz tragically to EEHV (endotheliotropic herpesvirus) recently on June 30, 2023. I wanted to do a video to look back at his life over the years through the footage I have collected in my many visits to the zoo (much of which has never been seen before). I hope that this will show those who had never seen him before how much personality and joy he brought to myself and others. And for those who were fans of Fitz, I hope this brings a little comfort in reflecting on and celebrating his life.
Fitz was born to his mother Mikki on August 2, 2019. He was conceived via IVF (Invitro fertilization). His birth was the first baby elephant born at the Louisville Zoo since Scotty was born in 2007 so there was a lot of excitement with fans of the zoo and elephants. He quickly became very popular with patrons of the zoo. In fact, his birth was the reason I purchased a season pass to the zoo initially (I have been a pass holder ever since).
My heart goes out to all those that are grieving and hurting. I especially feel for Mikki, Punch, his caretakers and staff at the Zoo as I cannot imagine what they are going through.
The thumbnail I created for this video is my favorite photo that I took of him. It was taken of him the first weekend he was able to be viewed by the public and I feel it shows his personality best and he appears happy. The image is cropped a little because of the dimensions.
For more information on Fitz, visit the Louisville Zoo's website: louisvillezoo.org/fitz/
00:00 Intro
02:56 5 weeks old
09:56 6 weeks old
20:06 2 months old
24:37 4 months old
30:59 7 months old
35:07 11 months old
38:16 1 year 6 months old
40:20 2 years 9 months old
45:03 2 years 10 months old
47:48 2 years 11 months old
50:01 3 years 2 months old
51:44 Outro
56:44 Fitz's Memorial
#elephant #africanelephant #zoo

[@Californiansurfer]

2012 to 2018. I worked in Jeffersonvill Indiana, Mishawaka Indiana and elkhart Indiana I visited Mahumid Ali museum in Louisville , I remember the caves and at Christmas time. I had so much video which I lost my camera at airport. I hope you have time to visit Muhmid Ali museum .. thank again. Frank Martinez. Downey California 😊😊😊😊

[@magn630]

Thank you for this sweet and heart-felt tribute to little Fitz. I totally understand your feeling of loss even though, like you said, you never fed or petted the little guy. I call it being a good human when we feel loss as precious beings around us move on from this world. I understand that elephants mourn their dead, so I hope Mikki is being helped to deal with her loss. Hang in there and be strong - the loss will never disappear, but it will get bearable. Hugs.

[@CWooSomewhere]

Thank you for your kind words.