Cher & Slash on opposite sides

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Slash

Cher, Slash and Lily Tomlin are among the stars taking sides in plans to move a beloved elephant from the Los Angeles Zoo to a sanctuary.

The celebrities were represented at City Hall on Wednesday evening, as city Arts, Entertainment, Parks and River Committee officials considered a proposal to give Billy a less restricted home.

Committee members agreed to investigate the mammal's current living quarters and his health before making a decision, prompting Cher to state it's already clear Billy is "very distressed".

"Billy, I've watched over the years, and all he does is sway back and forth and it means that he is very distressed," she told the committee.

Actress Tomlin later told City News Service, "We feel that he is in pretty dire circumstances. We're not trying to take the other elephants out. We're just trying to save Billy's life."

Meanwhile, rock star Slash, who is a zoo trustee, urged committee members to vote against moving Billy, insisting most people are "woefully out of touch with the facts", adding, "I think the facts are what are important here, and you should support the facts and the Los Angeles Zoo's elephant program and vote down this motion."

Zoo director John Lewis insisted Billy, who has lived at the zoo for most of his 30 years, is "not suffering", and is "in good health."

The committee members are also considering a motion to move Billy to a sanctuary and making L.A. Zoo an all-female elephant zone, allowing the mammals to use the entire enclosure.

Male and female elephants in captivity must be kept separate and the enclosure is currently divided to accommodate that.