Encino : Birthday Elephant Enjoys Special Cake

She has taught tens of thousands of people about pachyderms. In 1966, she led a parade of elephants to their new home in the Los Angeles Zoo. In recent years, she has lent her weight to David Horowitz’s product-testing efforts.

On Thursday, Gita the Asian elephant celebrated her 40th birthday by munching on a custom-made cake and listening to an enthusiastic chorus of “Happy Birthday” sung by more than 50 zoo employees, volunteers and other well-wishers.

“This is a particularly special animal because she has been here so long,” said Michael Dee, mammal curator for the L.A. Zoo. “She’s part of our family.”

Seeking a suitable gift for this 10,000-pound family member, zoo officials turned to the Gorilla Garden, the volunteer-run facility in Encino that grows a variety of fruit and foliage for animals.

The result was a 10-foot-tall cake-shaped bouquet of sugar cane, banana tree branches, Jerusalem artichokes, grapevines, Brussels sprouts and cornstalks.

“You just come up with anything they might like,” said Ginny Oeland, a Van Nuys resident and garden volunteer. “Being that they’re vegetarians, they’ll eat almost all vegetables.”

“You don’t want to give them something they wouldn’t normally get,” Dee said. “The elephant’s digestive system isn’t the best in the world.”

The gift appeared to be a popular concoction.

Gita was initially reluctant to leave her dwelling and join the festivities. “Maybe she’s putting on makeup,” Dee joked.

When she came out, Gita eagerly sampled the food, pausing between mouthfuls of banana tree branches and sugar cane to emit several low rumbles, which volunteers swear are an elephant’s version of purring.

“I think she’s smiling,” one observer said. “I think she’s having a good time.”