Elephant conservationists in India are working to help a grief-stricken elephant come to terms with the shock of losing her long-term partner.
Rupa and Amrit had been inseparable for ten years, having been rescued from a circus and brought to the Valmikinagar Tiger Project.
The pair had spent their days working together lifting logs, sharing their food and staff noted how Rupa even remained loyal to Amrit when he became crippled with arthritis.
Unfortunately, Amrit’s condition left him paralysed, and he died earlier this week from associated illnesses – leaving Rupa slumping into a deep depression.
According to The Telegraph, Rupa has since refused to eat and her rider has been unable to persuade her to move.
Her rider Prabhu Sanhi told the Hindustan Times he is now watching over Rupa 24 hours a day, noting she is “melancholy personified”:
“She is in an emotional shock after Amrit’s death. She stopped taking food completely and we had to switch on to her favorite foods like sugarcane and bananas. She has partially resumed eating now and the mahout is taking her to the different locations in the park to [help her] emerge out of the emotional shock.”
Elephants are noted as some of the most emotional and intelligent animals in the world, and can express both sadness and happiness.
This can often lead to a welling of water in their eyes or by refusing to eat their food.
Image via The Telegraph
