Elephants

 

Elephant Debate: Live in Zoo or Roam Free
Liz Szabo, USA Today, feature — November 2006
The traditional zoos we see now and even the ones they are planning cannot exhibit elephants humanely. Captive elephants who live on concrete also are prone to arthritis and foot lesions that researchers don't see in wild populations...

Chained, Caged & Degraded
Donna Carton, Sunday Mirror, commentary — July 2006
The captive wild animals are made to hobble around on three legs, swing their trunks 360 degrees in time to music, balance on tiny stools and act as a climbing frame for humans...

Brutal Killing of a Caged Wild Tusker in India
Unni Krishna, essay — June 2006
Whenever the elephant showed signs of rebellion, he was drugged and when he resisted the brutal, painful training he was punished savagely. The elephant was always in a state of stupor, induced probably by regular drugging...

Research Shows Elephants "Remember" the Dead
Animal Sentience, investigation — November 2005
The results suggest that elephants recognise and react with the remains of their own species, particularly the ivory tusks...

Questions and Answers About Not Having Elephants at the Detroit Zoo
Detroit Zoo, feature — August 2005
A fundamental requirement for keeping animals in captivity is that we provide an excellent quality of life. In order to do that we must meet a species' and an individual's physical, social and psychological needs. We feel that we can accomplish this for all the animals at the Detroit Zoo, but can't for elephants....

An Elephant Man
Seven McDonald, LA Weekly, feature — May 2005
When he chained himself to the fence of the elephant exhibit at the Los Angeles Zoo in protest of the zoo’s elephant care, he wasn’t fooling around...

The Elephant in the Room
Robert Meyerowitz, Anchorage Press, feature — April 2005
Almost none of the experts the zoo has consulted were concerned about Maggie being so far north, he said. “Almost all of them were concerned about her being alone.”

Elephant Deaths Spur New Debate Over U.S. Zoos
Andrew Stern, Reuters, feature — Spring 2005
Zoo elephants swaying back and forth, polar bears swimming in endless circuits and manic monkeys grooming themselves to baldness. Such disturbed, trance-like behavior in some zoo animals and the deaths of four elephants in the past year at two U.S. zoos have sparked animal rights protests and renewed a larger debate over the purpose of zoos...

Elephant Abuse Charges Add Fuel to Circus Debate
Maryann Mott, National Geographic News, feature — 2004
Should elephants perform in circuses? It’s a simple question that’s caused a lot of controversy over the years. At the heart of the matter are allegations by animal-welfare activists that brutal training methods are used to coerce elephants...into performing tricks such as headstands...

Activists Denounce Thailand's Elephant 'Crushing' Ritual
Jennifer Hile, Naional Geographic Today, feature — 2002
It’s a sound not easily forgotten. Just before dawn in the remote highlands of northern Thailand, west of the village Mae Jaem, a four-year-old elephant bellows as seven village men stab nails into her ears and feet...

When Elephants Weep:
On the Emotional Lives of Animals

Jeffrey M. Masson, essay
On this earth live intelligent beings whose lifespans are about 70 years. For them, family reunions are a joyous occasion. They assist the disabled. They mourn their dead. They weep...

Elephants Cry Too
Florence L. Lambert, essay
On this earth live intelligent beings whose lifespans are about 70 years. For them, family reunions are a joyous occasion. They assist the disabled. They mourn their dead. They weep...

 

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