Ali led a wild life as one of the elephants on Michael Jackson’s Neverland Ranch. That was until he retired to the Jacksonville Zoo and Gardens in 1997. With celebrity-filled parties behind him, the most excitement events he attends are to see his dentist. But jokes aside, dental surgery is especially serious for an elephant or any large mammal like Ali.
He’s currently recovering from tusk surgery, where they had to remove his remaining tusk via a three-hour procedure. A team of wildlife veterinarians was assembled, including elephant specialists from South Africa and India. Ali thankfully This follows tusk procedures in 2019 and 2023.
Ali did have one other headline-grabbing adventure in 2018. Due to a gate being left open… Ali escaped! But luckily just into another courtyard that wasn’t accessible by the public.
Michael Jackson has several elephants living on his Neverland Ranch. They include Gypsy (seen below), a thank-you gift from Elizabeth Taylor for Jackson hosting her 8th wedding at Neverland in 1991. And if that seems like quite a hefty thank-you gift, note the bill for the wedding came to around $1.5 million, which Jackson also picked up. Make sure to check out Michael Jackson’s exotic list of pets.
