This morning as I was doing my morning reading (avoiding doing things that need doing) on my Google Reader I read a post over at Forks Off The Moment. It directed me to go to a site about an elephant sanctuary in Tennessee. I did not know that they even had places like these (dumb me) - I made the acquaintance of Ned
On Saturday, November 8, 2008 an emaciated Asian male elephant named Ned was confiscated from Florida based circus trainer Lance Ramos by the USDA for failure to comply with the Animal Welfare Act and was placed by USDA authority with The Elephant Sanctuary in Tennessee. On Sunday, November 9th, 2008 at about 12:30 p.m., Ned arrived at The Elephant Sanctuary. Ned will reside only temporarily in his private facility at The Sanctuary until a permanent facility is ready for him.
It looks like they have 24 elephants at the sanctuary. Ned came on November 8. There is a video of him arriving at the sanctuary (see below) , a diary of his day to day story, and much more. The video will tug your heart strings. I think there must be a special place in hell (if I believed in hell) for people who mistreat animals. And a very special place in heaven (if I believed in heaven) for those who rescue them.
There is something about elephants that touches me. I love to watch them use their trunk and they have a magnificent social structure in the wild.
There is also an elephant cam. I urge you to watch the video and then visit the site. As the doors to the van are opened and Ned looks out and then slowly emerges from the van. You can see the tentativeness as he decides it is OK to come out and look around. Watch as he moves from the van to the barn and looks from side to side to check out whether this is a place he wants to be and then stay to watch as he begins to eat. Go read his diary and learn about his progress over the last two months. Have a great week-end and thanks for stopping by. j
Dianne has this video up on her site and it is wonderful. About Bella (the dog) and Tarra (the elephant) who are best friends.
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1 comment:
I have spent so much time at the elephant site that I don't think I have any water left - but also my face hurts from smiling
I remember the first time I took Mia to the vet - she had only been with me 2 days. when we got back home and I opened her carrier she stood there - and then she peeked out and her nose was twitching and her ears were going like crazy satellite dishes
and she ran to her food and her bed and her litter
and then she just looked at me - the relief in her face that she had come back to the SAME home was so evident
and so profound that I just sat there and wept
Ned reminds me of Mia
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