Thank you for the post Sue.
It is very depressing how humans treat the animals in this world.
Due to the enormous size and strength of both African and Asian elephants, it is a fact that most trainers rely on chains and fear to make them obey. Typically the process starts with an elephant being beaten into submission at a very young age. Sadly, some elephants will spend a great deal of their lives in chains. The well-known Dumbo lived 20 years in "martingales," chains that ran from his tusks to his feet. In the wild, the life expectancy of elephants is generally the same as that of humans. In the circus, many elephants die prematurely from disease and the stress of confinement, for what?
http://elephant.elehost.com/News/General_News/About_Cir...s/about_circuses.htm
Love, Inda
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Elephants are some of my favourite animals.
It is nice to know that there are some retreats on Earth where the injured animals are well taken care of.