Two Abused Elephants Reunited after 23 Years

I recently read a heartwarming story in Reader's Digest about the reuniting of two elephants after 23 years of abuse at the Elephant Sanctuary. Here's the beginning of it. Read the full story of Jenny and Shirley here!

A circus refugee, Jenny had often been tied up for 23 hours a day or crammed into small train of cars traveling from one city to the next. After suffering a crippling leg injury, she was dumped at a dog-and-cat shelter, which was ill-equipped to care for an elephant, let alone an ailing one. An animal rights activist contacted Buckley, who brought Jenny to Hohenwald.

When Jenny was released into the sanctuary, that’s when she stumbled on a friend from the past...but would they remember one another?

The Carol Buckley Elephant Sanctuary, started in 1995, offers what Buckley considers the three staples for a happy elephant: freedom from dominance, room to roam and lots of other elephants. At the 2,700-acre preserve, the 19 African and Asian elephants in residence are allowed to exist as they would in the wild. Elephants in zoos and circuses are typically moved with a tool called an ankus, a nasty-looking wooden shaft with a metal hook protruding from the top. It’s banned at the sanctuary. Instead, there is a system where dominance does not exist at all, and elephants have the option to refuse to cooperate with humans.

Read more about elephants on our Elephant Facts page.

View more pics of the Elephant Sanctuary here.