Billy has company

Billy the long suffering elephant at the Los Angeles Zoo in Griffith Park now has company - or is that co-inmates?  Two female African elephants arrived Thursday and are on indefinite loan from the San Diego Zoo.

Neither Tina or Jewel are spring chickens, both being between 43 and 45 years old. Billy is just 25. Makes you wonder if the San Diego Zoo wasn't hedging its bet just a bit, thinking to let an already suspect institution take the fall if either of them passes.

Regardless, Billy finally has companionship - a joyous occasion for animals as social as elephants.

The new Elephant exhibit at the LA Zoo opens in mid-December.