Horrifying footage of an elephant calf collapsing from apparent exhaustion has emerged from Thailand.
The baby elephant, thought to be approximately one year of age, was attached to its mother with rope while tourists rode her at Nong Nooch Tropical Gardens in Pattaya, eastern Thailand.
The footage, which was captured by a concerned tourist, shows the young elephant falling and rolling about on the floor in 40C heat before getting back to its feet. People in the video can be overheard discussing how tired the calf appeared to be.
The worried tourist who took the video has not been named, however she has stated that the calf appeared to be exhausted from walking around in the heat with its mother.
The tourist – who works as a teacher in Thailand’s neighbouring country Myanmar – said:
There are many more baby elephants tied with their mother walking around with tourists at their backs enjoying under the heat of the sun while these elephants are suffering.
This one baby elephant was so exhausted, and you can see the mother comforting and encouraging her to stand.
She continued:
I’m just concerned for the elephants and want to ensure their welfare is properly taken care of.
A spokesperson from the Nong Nooch Tropical Gardens has denied allegations that the baby elephant was exhausted or being mistreated in any way.
The spokesperson said:
All of the elephants are healthy and treated very well. If there is a problem they are treated by vets. All of the babies here are healthy.
This footage comes mere days after a young elephant died at Thailand’s notorious Phuket Zoo. This baby elephant – nicknamed Dumbo by animal rights campaigners – died after his reportedly skeletal condition led to a campaign to have him moved from the zoo.
As reported by The Phuket News, Dumbo had suffered from a digestive tract infection which had left him weak and underweight.
It has been reported that Dumbo – or Ping Pong as he was known as the zoo – was left so weakened that his legs broke while he was performing tricks for tourists. He was just three years old at the time of his death.
Dumbo’s legs snapped after he struggled to pull himself out of the mud, with his bones being too brittle and thin to take the strain. Workers at the zoo reportedly didn’t even realise his legs had been broken for three days.
If you have a story you want to tell send it to UNILAD via stories@unilad.co.uk
Jules studied English Literature with Creative Writing at Lancaster University before earning her masters in International Relations at Leiden University in The Netherlands (Hoi!). She then trained as a journalist through News Associates in Manchester. Jules has previously worked as a mental health blogger, copywriter and freelancer for various publications.