An intolerable life sentence for Dumba the elephant

Forty years of loneliness and stress

From a young age and now at 41, Dumba lives the drama of the animals of circuses. In an immense solitude, this elephant languishes in a life sentence of misery in prison conditions. For many years, with our partners of the FAADA Foundation and the support of the Catalan authorities, we have asked its "owners" to bring, at the very least, its facilities up to the required standards. Nothing works. However, animals in general and Dumba in particular have nothing to do with life under these blasted tents.

Observations, nothing but observations

The observations made by the veterinarians, who evaluated Dumba from videos and photographs, are without appeal. Dr. Yon holds a PhD in Animal Physiology. She has been working on elephants and studying them for twenty years. Dr. Jaume Fatjo holds a doctorate in animal behaviour. He is a graduate of the European College of Animal Welfare and Behavioural Medicine. What do they tell us?

"It appears that this elephant has a significantly lower NEC (Body Condition Score) than was observed in Asian elephants in freedom; knowing that wild elephants generally have a lower NEC than captive elephants, there is something to worry about here... For us, it is clear that this elephant is very clearly underweight. This may be due to: an inappropriate diet, and / or a health problem that renders it unable to properly ingest, digest and metabolize the food available to it, and / or some other kind of systemic disease. Whatever the cause, it must be remedied urgently: it is for the health and well-being of this elephant ".

They added: "In addition, as veterinarians, we are concerned about the postures and positions of the elephant on these photographs. Some of these positions (the elephant standing on its hind legs, or sitting on a stool) are not natural for elephants and put strain on his joints. Such positions are of concern if the elephant is forced to adopt them as part of regular and repeated activities, as this carries a high risk of degenerative disease affecting various joints in her back, hips, limbs and feet. We have serious concerns about the health and well-being of this elephant, and we consider that an examination and evaluation of this animal is urgently needed. "

What more can be said? These words are terrifying. Observations, nothing but observations.

Now facts, nothing but facts

The elephant Dumba is now in the hands of the Cirque de Paris. The owners have a multitude of entertainment companies and all exploit animals. They have made a specialty of challenging the authorities. We continue to intervene with the authorities or the courts to try to save all the animals held by these circuses. They are numerous and of all kinds: lions, zebras, elephants, pythons, hippos, bovids, camels, dromedaries and domestic animals. Many of these beings are illegally detained, in regards to the regulations that we criticize.

We must free Dumba from the yoke of his trainers

We still remember our friendship and our admiration for the Circus families who had the courage to turn their back on a centuries-old and barbaric tradition, abandoning shows that included animals. The circus of Paris and others are not among them.

They continue to live from animal exploitation. We will continue our fight, with strength and determination, such as Jean Valjean.

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