Zoos and other tourist attractions that revolve around animals may be great for your Instagram feed, but they can also be seriously harmful to the animals forced into captivity. Animal mistreatment still happens all over the world, but it is usually kept hidden from tourists' cameras. A recent story from Thailand brings animal suffering to the forefront. News outlets are reporting on the death of a baby elephant, dubbed "Dumbo," who died in the care of the Phuket Zoo. The elephant first received international attention three months ago when videos and photos surfaced showing the emaciated elephant forced to dance to rave music and "play" instruments. Sri Lanka’s Shameful Elephant AbusePlanning a winter getaway? PLEASE, never ride elephants 🐘😥 [https://instagram.com/moving.animals]Posted by PETA UK on Thursday, December 20, 2018 The videos and photos were taken by Moving Animals, an organisation dedicated to exposing malpractices in the animal industry. The video shocked and horrified international audiences, but the zoo evidently did little to improve the young animal's situation, despite a petition which gained international traction. View this post on Instagram 💗Свадьбы и фотосессии💗 Букеты, арки, стилист, транспорт🍍🏝️ Вопросы в (Viber,WhatsApp)👇 📞 +66 90 286 9800 Вконтакте👉 vk.com/weddingpics_ru ЦЕНЫ👉 weddingpics.ru #фотографнапхукете #kolan #фотографпхукет #тайланд #паттайя #фотосессиянасамуи #фотосессиясамуи #фотографнасамуи #свадьбапаттайя #лавсторипаттайя #свадьбасамуи #свадьбавпаттайе #самуи #паттайяфотограф #колан #фотосессиявьетнам #пхукет #свадьбанапхукете #фотосессияпаттайя #фотографпаттайя #фотографвпаттайе #фотосессиявпаттайе #фотографтаиланд #фотосессиянапхукете #фотосессияпхукет #свадьбапхукет #свадьбавтайланде #хочувтай #свадебноеагенство #тайланд2019 A post shared by Фотограф Фотосессия в Тайланде (@weddingpics.ru) on May 17, 2019 at 8:26am PDT As it turns out, Dumbo had an infection in his digestive tract, which made him very weak. According to Moving Animals, he broke his legs while trying to get out of some sticky mud. He raised himself up on his back legs, but he was so weak that they snapped. It took the Phuket Zoo three days to even realise his legs were broken. The Phuket Zoo finally took him to the vet, where he died three days later. This is not an isolated incident. This photo from National Geographic exposes how animals are exploited for the sake of tourists everywhere. READ ALSO: Lyme Disease-Carrying Ticks Will Swarm Canada This Weekend, Scientists Warn View this post on Instagram Photos by Kirsten Luce @kirstenluce | At Sriracha Tiger Zoo, in Chon Buri, Thailand, tigers are kept in small cages and taken out for photo ops. Captive tigers are speed bred and taken from their mothers at birth to ensure that there are always new, adorable cubs for visitors to handle. Often, larger tigers are declawed and/or drugged in order to make it safe for them to pose with the steady stream of tourists who want photos with them. For the June 2019 issue of National Geographic, writer @natashaldaly and I traveled the world to learn about wildlife tourism and the suffering that goes on behind the scenes. Our intention is not to shame tourists who have had these encounters but to arm our readers with information that will help them identify potentially abusive situations for animals. To learn more, read our story at natgeo.com/wildlifetourism and follow @world_animal_protection which works to raise awareness and help animals in the tourism industry. A post shared by National Geographic (@natgeo) on May 16, 2019 at 5:54am PDT Moving Animals stated that "for “Dumbo” to die whilst under the so-called “care” and “treatment” of the zoo shows just how neglected these animals are in captivity.We want to thank everyone for their overwhelming support for “Dumbo”. They continue by saying that they "hope that “Dumbo” is now finding the peace that he was so cruelly denied in his lifetime, and that this tragic story will urge Thai authorities to finally put an end to these outdated animal performances." Source | Source
