An elephant sanctuary near Limoges is opening its doors to the public for two days at the end of November – four years since the French government adopted a law to phase out the use of wild animals in live performances.
The measure was passed on November 30, 2021 “to combat animal abuse and strengthen their bond with humans”.
Plans to facilitate the transition were announced in April, including five financial aid schemes, support for travelling structures evolving into fixed premises, and the creation of animal shelters and refuges.
Elephant Haven is one of the organisations helping to rehome these creatures, acting as a “retirement home and care centre” for former zoo and circus elephants.
It will host open days on November 28 and 29 to members of the public by prior reservation only.
“Friends, neighbours, supporters, partners, the curious..., come and meet our team! This friendly get-together will be the opportunity to chat and find out more about the sanctuary's progress,” reads a statement on the centre’s website.
The sanctuary, located in the Parc Naturel Régional Périgord Nord, is unique in Europe and was co-founded by Sofie Goetghebeur and her partner Tony Verhulst - both previously carers at Antwerp Zoo.
Delhi (42) moved in on August 24, 2022, travelling all the way from Ústí nad Labem Zoo in the Czech Republic.
“The elephants have access to the barn and outside enclosures, day and night. They are always free to come and go.
"Everything is their choice, and we follow their rhythm,” Ms Goetghebeur told The Connexion.
She explained that Gandhi and Delhi, both female Asian elephants, have health issues and mental trauma related to their past.
The wild animals were captured in Thailand and Vietnam when they were still calves.
Elephant Haven is not usually open to the public and the team uses a care method known as ‘protected contact’.
This means there is always a barrier between caregivers and the elephants, and they never enter an area at the same time. For this reason, there is no guarantee that open day attendees will see Gandhi or Delhi, however they may catch a glimpse of the elephants if they move around the grounds.
Life at Elephant Haven
An average day for the elephants, who the team refer to as “the ladies”, includes medical check-ups, snacking on branches, rolling in clay baths, and roaming outside.
“Gandhi is partial to a siesta,” added Ms Goetghebeur.
“A lot of the daily routine depends on the elephants, their health, the weather. If they are inside and looking for some attention, we do medical training.
"For instance, we train for drawing blood, doing trunkwashes [twice-a-year monitoring for tuberculosis], and we now train Gandhi to put her foot on a plate so we can take x-rays.”
Regular training benefits the animals’ welfare by reducing stress when real samples are required, as they are familiar with the procedures and more likely to cooperate.
“Everything is voluntary. They can stop and leave if they want to, but mostly they stay. We are here to try to give them a nice retirement,” said Ms Goetghebeur.
Gandhi and Delhi developed a close friendship living side-by-side at the sanctuary: “Whenever they had briefly not seen each other, a lot of trumpeting and squawking could be heard, as if they both had a whole adventure to share.
"When Gandhi called, Delhi would come running to her, and when Delhi, for example, heard a strange noise, she would quickly go to find Gandhi,” reads an extract from one of Elephant Haven’s newsletters.
Both elephants have health issues and mental trauma related to their pastEHEES
That all changed in May however, when Gandhi charged at Delhi, pushing her over and wrestling her trunk. In the days that followed, the animals stayed distant and appeared restless.
“We separated them and tried a few times to put them back together again, but it is clear that it is too soon. Gandhi needs time.
"We are trying to understand what happened, and the reason why. We have spoken to other sanctuaries and parks… [Elephants] are no different to us and their relationship changes every day. We just need to give them space and time.”
Measuring 29 hectares, Elephant Haven is technically big enough to house three elephants, however following the shift in Gandhi and Delhi’s relationship the team decided they would not consider taking on another animal at this time.
Expansion plans
“Not being able to help more animals is frustrating but we learned that space is very important. That is why we need to expand. We often get requests to take in new elephants, especially as we are currently the only sanctuary for elephants in Europe, but we need a second barn first,” said Ms Goetghebeur.
Site expansion plans are underway, however government support has been halted due to the ongoing budget negotiations.
The Ministry for Ecological Transition previously funded the construction of the sanctuary’s outside enclosures following the legal ban on using wild animals in shows and circus performances.
“The government is helping zoos, refuges and sanctuaries to create space for all those animals,” said Ms Goetghebeur.
“We still depend on donations and volunteers to help on the ground and with administration and fundraising. We are looking for funds and donations of materials to build the barn as soon as possible so we can offer more elephants a place to live.”
Note that people who have not booked online before attending the open day will be turned away as too many unexpected cars and visitors could upset or stress the elephants.
