Shame On Us: Young Elephant Dies Of Exhaustion After Being Made To Carry Tourists Without A Break

The Internet was quite shaken by the death of a 70-year-old elephant in Sri Lanka. The festival elephant was named Tikiri, and her starving body was hidden for days under a colorful festive costume.

Tikiri was among 60 elephants who were forced to march at the Perahera festival in Kandy every year, reports BBC. She died of starvation and it raised questions about the cruelty meted out to animals in the name of tourism.

AFP/Tikiri

Now, another incident has come forth from Sri Lanka, where an elephant has died of exhaustion. The teenage elephant named, Kanakota, carried tourists in the beautiful town of Sigiriya, Sri Lanka, a place that is known for its historic monuments.

TOI reports that the 18-year-old elephant gave three consecutive rides to tourists, after which it was exhausted; it collapsed and never woke up. It was also made to walk in a parade, a day before its death.

Representational Image/Facebook

Since the incident, animal welfare activists have been pushing authorities to bring about policy changes and take action.

One animal rights activist pointed out, that it is also the responsibility of the tourists to refuse animal rides as it contributes to animal abuse. Until and unless tourists are themselves conscious of the part they are playing in the death of these poor creatures, animals will continue to collapse and suffer from exhaustion.

Metro

It is incidents like this that call for animal rights policies to be mended around the world. Every life matters and should be treated with respect. We are overworking and exhausting these creatures, who in return ask for nothing. We use them for our pleasure, and to earn money, and fail to provide them with basic necessities to stay alive; we fail to be human enough to make sure they're okay. What does that say about us?