Before she was rescued, Rhea’s life was far from calm. She was forced to perform in a circus. The harsh crack of bullhooks, loud cheers, and blinding lights was all she knew. Rhea (right) was forced to obey order and contort her body into painful absurd positions to shouts from a crowd.
Rhea arrived guarded and subdued, a soul dimmed by years of confinement. At our Elephant Conservation and Care Centre, she was greeted by a gentle presence who would become the light of her world — Mia (left). The two were together in the circus silently suffering side by side, but could now be together surrounded by love and kindness.
Bats are amazing animals, found all over the world except Antarctica. They are highly intelligent with complex social behaviours, vocal calls, and even have a long-term memory.
Unlike humans, elephants have a special way of resting — they can nap while standing! This way, they can wake up quickly to respond to threats. They experience REM sleep only when lying down.
Srinu, a biologist, a mentor, and an innovator, quickly became a cherished member of Wildlife SOS. With his expertise in ethology, endocrinology and genetics, he has conducted research studies.
Some bull elephants develop massive tusks or smaller tushes. But over the last few decades, wildlife experts have observed a significant shift among bull elephants.
Bani is getting BIG! Our favourite determined little elephant is growing and in need of a bigger enclosure. She’s definitely rapidly outgrowing her “nursery”, so we’ve broken ground on her “teenage” enclosure. She’ll get a personal pool, lots of soft mud and dirt to play in, shelter, and a specialized treatment area made possible by YOUR GENEROUS DONATIONS. Thank you! The photos above are caregiver and Bani BFF Vijay. [WATCH BANI GET TREATS]
Understanding Human-Macaque Conflict
India is home to 10 species of macaques, out of which three have adapted to living in and around human populations.
Rajesh has perfected the ability to escape the eye of anyone looking for him. He is a quiet leopard, which could be easily mistaken as a trait of shyness.
Capturing the huge scope of our work condensed into a short video is quite a challenge. We’re thrilled to share this new video. Watch and please share!
Circusolifant Rhea, is gered door Wildlife SOS. Gehesen in de truck gevuld met fruit en bakken water kon de reis beginnen. 2100 km lange reis duurdere meerdere dagen. In april heeft deze geweldig actie plaats gevonden maar ik zag het pas vandaag. Natuurlijk maakt dit niets uit want het blijft geweldig nieuws. Hieronder wat updates en prachtige foto's
We’ve got some great news to share with you about Rhea, the circus elephant in Tamil Nadu who we’ve been trying to reunite with her sisters, Mia and Sita, at our center in Mathura. She has been rescued by our team and has been loaded on the truck safely, packed with loads of fresh fruits and buckets of water to keep her tummy full and hydrated during the journey.
Her 2100 km journey from Tamil Nadu to ECCC in Mathura will take her several days. She’s traveling in our custom-designed elephant ambulance, accompanied by the Wildlife SOS expert paramedics team.
So stay tuned and keep checking as we post updates straight from the field on this blog and on Facebook.
UPDATE Rhea has been loaded onto our elephant ambulance, and is on her way to be reunited with her “sisters” Mia and Sita at our rescue center! Our team removed her chains, gave her a cooling bath, and filled her tummy with coconuts, watermelons, and bananas (her favorite!)
UPDATE The rescue team has just crossed the border into Andhra Pradesh. Rhea was restless at first, but soon settled down. Our team reports that she is incredibly vocal, and they are hearing lots of “squealing and squeaking.”
UPDATE - The elephant ambulance has had to stop on the highway (100km from Kurnool in Andhra Pradesh) to take care of some vehicle trouble. It took our team 20 minutes to fix the engine. The team used the break to check up on our elephant co-passenger Rhea and clean out the ambulance. Rhea is being comforted in the back with lots and lots of fresh treats.
UPDATEIn order to beat the midday sun, our team on the field has stopped to give Rhea a cooling shower. They have also built a thatch roof out of the coconut leaves to keep her shaded and cool.
UPDATE The elephant ambulance stopped just before entering the state of Maharashtra and the mahouts gathered a delicious leafy meal for Rhea, lugging it all the way back to the ambulance for our eagerly awaiting elephant, who immediately began munching on her morning meal. It was a delight to see Rhea trumpeting loudly as soon as she saw our team bringing her yummy breakfast.
(Currently 228 km from Nagpur) UPDATE After non stop traveling since morning, we’ve stopped for a break, and to give Rhea some time to stretch her legs. We gave her a shower as a very generous restaurant owner on the highway offered us to use his water his tank, and let her walk around a bit. She gave herself a dust bath and expressed her absolute delight by squeaking and rumbling throughout!
Circusolifant Rhea, is gered door Wildlife SOS. Gehesen in de truck gevuld met fruit en bakken water kon de reis beginnen. 2100 km lange reis van meerdere dagen. In april heeft deze geweldig actie plaats gevonden maar ik zag het pas vandaag. Natuurlijk maakt dit niets uit want het blijft geweldig nieuws. Hieronder wat updates en prachtige foto's en bekijk vooral de video.
We’ve got some great news to share with you about Rhea, the circus elephant in Tamil Nadu who we’ve been trying to reunite with her sisters, Mia and Sita, at our center in Mathura. She has been rescued by our team and has been loaded on the truck safely, packed with loads of fresh fruits and buckets of water to keep her tummy full and hydrated during the journey.
Her 2100 km journey from Tamil Nadu to ECCC in Mathura will take her several days. She’s traveling in our custom-designed elephant ambulance, accompanied by the Wildlife SOS expert paramedics team.
So stay tuned and keep checking as we post updates straight from the field on this blog and on Facebook.
UPDATE – April 15, 2016 ,6:00 pm IST: Rhea has been loaded onto our elephant ambulance, and is on her way to be reunited with her “sisters” Mia and Sita at our rescue center! Our team removed her chains, gave her a cooling bath, and filled her tummy with coconuts, watermelons, and bananas (her favorite!)
UPDATE- April 16, 2016 ,12:30am IST: The rescue team has just crossed the border into Andhra Pradesh. Rhea was restless at first, but soon settled down. Our team reports that she is incredibly vocal, and they are hearing lots of “squealing and squeaking.”
UPDATE - April 16, 2016, 8:00 am IST: The elephant ambulance has had to stop on the highway (100km from Kurnool in Andhra Pradesh) to take care of some vehicle trouble. It took our team 20 minutes to fix the engine. The team used the break to check up on our elephant co-passenger Rhea and clean out the ambulance. Rhea is being comforted in the back with lots and lots of fresh treats.
UPDATE- April 16, 2016 , 4:30 pm IST: In order to beat the midday sun, our team on the field has stopped to give Rhea a cooling shower. They have also built a thatch roof out of the coconut leaves to keep her shaded and cool.
UPDATE – April 17, 2016 , 11:00 am IST: The elephant ambulance stopped just before entering the state of Maharashtra and the mahouts gathered a delicious leafy meal for Rhea, lugging it all the way back to the ambulance for our eagerly awaiting elephant, who immediately began munching on her morning meal. It was a delight to see Rhea trumpeting loudly as soon as she saw our team bringing her yummy breakfast.
(Currently 228 km from Nagpur) UPDATE – April 17, 2016, 4:00 pm IST : After non stop traveling since morning, we’ve stopped for a break, and to give Rhea some time to stretch her legs. We gave her a shower as a very generous restaurant owner on the highway offered us to use his water his tank, and let her walk around a bit. She gave herself a dust bath and expressed her absolute delight by squeaking and rumbling throughout!
