It's a favorite exhibit among Syracuse Residents. But the care of elephants at the Rosamond Gifford zoo has an unfortunate history. Four elephants have died in their care.

"I don't know if people remember the old Zoo." said Syracuse resident Ron Hart. "That was not a very good thing."

Only one was due to improper care, but it's still a reason the In Defense of Animals organization has placed them on their Worst Zoos for elephants five times. Most recently it’s because of their separation and breeding practices.

"In this case they were saying things as if they were factual that were completely wrong." said Rosamond Gifford Executive Director, Ted Fox. "The staff really got enraged about the whole thing."

The group posted footage of an elephant, claiming it's trying to escape. They say during a visit, an investigator saw Doc, a male elephant swaying due to stress.

The Zoo says the elephant in the video is not even Doc, it's Romani, and she is just exploring.

"When they send people here unannounced, ask leading questions to maybe some volunteers, they're just misinformed. They are not getting the truth." said Fox.

The investigator claims a zookeeper said Doc was going to leave the zoo, but the zoo says that's not the case.

"When we got Doc we knew he was going to be here. We love that elephant. He's an exemplary animal to lead a herd." said Fox.

Doc is part of a three generation family currently at the Zoo. Something they say proves that elephants aren't separated

"More than anything, social structure among the animals is so critical. The staff is so in tuned of each individual animal every single day," said Fox.

As the Zoo continues to work on improving their care for the elephants, longtime visitors say they've noticed a difference.

"This compared to that is fantastic. Elephants would probably do better in their normal habitat, but I think they do a good job." said Hart.

The Rosamond Gifford Zoo is accredited by the Association of Zoos and Aquariums.