It is known the company Have Trunk Will Travel supplies trained elephants for movies, advertising, personal appeararances, elephant rides, fairs & other public appearences. Maybe what is known less or not is how they train them, the methods that are being used! Well you can watch this for yourself in the highly disturbing video added to this petition!
Animal Defenders International investigated and has released shocking footage from their 8-week undercover investigation of Have Trunk Will Travel, where elephants used in the movies Water for Elephants, Zookeeper, Britney Spears’ circus video and many other ads and shows, were trained.
The footage below shows the animals being beaten and electric shocked with stun guns, to perform the tricks seen in the movies and other performances, including:
Have Trunk Will Travel owners and trainers using stun guns and beating animals with bull hooks
Have Trunk Will Travel boss Kari Johnson viciously striking an elephant
A baby elephant being hit over the head and dragged by the trunk
Elephants chained by the legs barely able to take one step back and forward (the elephants were being chained from 6.30pm to 6.30am, 12 hours a day)
The elephants show very clearly stress and fear by their stereotypical moves, like swaying, stepping back and forward again! Weaving is a surrogate activity caused by boredom, frustration and desolation!
It is clear that there is only word to summarize these actions: ABUSE!
Abuse of sentient, self-conscious, intelligent, social, caring beings for the purpose of entertainment, being exploited for human greed and money making!
Elephants do not belong in an "industry" of humans: they belong in the wild, but since these elephants never can be send to the wild no more, they need immediately be released to a sanctuary! The sanctuary which is most obvious is Hohenwald in Tennessee!
We demand: immediate medical investigation and care and immediate release from that hell place and shutting down this abusive business!
