The Global Media Site for Entertainment.
Menu
France has just opened a unique retirement home and sanctuary for circus and zoo elephants. Two former Flemish zookeepers, Sofie Goetghebeur and Tony Verhulst, created the sanctuary in response to a ban on employing wild animals in circuses. The ban is currently in place in 23 European countries and will soon be adopted in France.
Sofie Goetghebeur and Tony Verhulst believe that there are still approximately 100 elephants in circuses across Europe at this point in time.
Shipping them back to Asia or Africa is complicated, as you can imagine for animals of this size. It can also be dangerous for the animals. So, the best course of action is to find them a local sanctuary.
The first resident of the new sanctuary is a 52-year-old female Asian elephant called Gandhi.
The “Elephant Haven” is located within the Perigord-Limousin natural park in Bussiere-Galant. Sofie and Tony already started building the 29-hectare farm in 2016.
At first the locals as well as the mayor Emmanuel Dexet were a little surprised by the unusual idea, but they quickly warmed to building the sanctuary.
For the past five years, Sofie and Tony have been working with local authorities to produce safety measures. These will come into effect should the elephants ever manage to escape into the vast forests that surround the sanctuary.
So, now all the hard work has paid off and Gandhi is starting to settle into her retirement haven. She was transferred to her new home on October 14, 2021.
Ghandi’s journey by transport vehicle took 10 hours. But, thankfully, there were no complications.
“On arrival, she left her crate quickly and confidently, straight into our warm elephant barn and began eating straight away,” says the sanctuary team.
Apparently, the old female elephant has had some traumatizing experiences in the past after she was brought as a baby from Thailand to a zoo in the North of France.
As elephants are social creatures, she will now be slowly re-introduced to a calmer life with other elephants in the soothing environment of the sanctuary.
After a few weeks, she is still adapting well to her new environment. The cool winds of the surrounding valleys – which sit at an altitude of 400 metres – often convince her to return to her brand new enclosure, constantly heated to 18°C by two heat pumps and a stove.
The sanctuary is authorised to house three female elephants in its current state, but there are plans to expand it.
Sofie Goetghebeur and Tony Verhulst ultimately intend to collect six or seven elephants to help them enjoy the remainder of their lives in peace and tranquility.
“We hope they will stay here for another 20 years,” says Sofie, and there is a chance. An elephant can live up to 70 years, at least in the wild, according to the French Association of Zoological Parks (AFdPZ).
This is a wonderful step in the right direction. For, as good as it is that circuses are now banned ever more broadly from using elephants and other animals in their shows – no one has really considered yet what precisely to do with the animals which are retired.
Hopefully, over time, more of these sanctuaries will be founded over time.
Original article by Doloresz Katanich in euronews.green
On YouTube:
The Moscow Cat Theatre Engages Cats as Actors
Bewegtes Land, an Art Project For Train Passengers
Liam Klenk was born in Central Europe and has since lived on four continents. Liam has always been engaged in creative pursuits, ranging from photography and graphic design, to writing short stories and poetry, to working in theatre and shows. In 2016, Liam published his first book and memoir, 'Paralian'.
Read Full Profile
© 2021 TheatreArtLife. All rights reserved.
Thank you so much for reading, but you have now reached your free article limit for this month.
Our contributors are currently writing more articles for you to enjoy.
To keep reading, all you have to do is become a subscriber and then you can read unlimited articles anytime.
Your investment will help us continue to ignite connections across the globe in live entertainment and build this community for industry professionals.
