On the streets of Mumbai, India, an aged, blind elephant will no longer be forced to beg for money on broken feet.
Lakhi, a 60-year-old animal, was saved “from a horrible life of cruelty,” according to Manoj Oswal, an animal activist with People for Animals, who spoke to The Times of India. She’s on her way to a refuge for elephants, where she’ll spend the remainder of her days in better company.
Wildlife SOS, an animal welfare organization involved with her rescue, recounts a sobering list of how she suffered: punctured feet, pointed chains around her ankles, dehydration and wounds from whipping. Head trauma, including bullhooks to her eyes, is likely the cause of her blindness, the group said, as well as age and poor nutrition.
Now Lakhi is receiving the care she deserves. Here she is getting her daily medicated foot bath.
“A pedicure for a beautiful girl no matter what size!” wrote RESQ Charitable Trust, the organization taking care of Lakhi until she can be moved to her new home.
When it became clear that Lakhi would be compelled to work in a film, an Indian court turned her over to her rescuers.
“The court has taken note of the horrific brutality meted out to Lakhi, as well as her bad physical state brought on by years of torment and anguish,” Tanvi Kulkarni, chair of People for Animals, told The New York Times.
“I am relieved to learn that she is finally receiving justice and that she will be reunited with other elephants in a fully natural setting.”
Lakhi will shortly go 800 miles to the Elephant Conservation and Care Center, where she will be joined by pachyderms such as Raju, the “weeping elephant.”
0 Comments