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‘Rescue Molly’ campaign reunites abused elephant with her mother after 4-year maltreatment
- Molly was transported to central China when she was two years old for genetic diversity
- But she ended up living a life kept in chains, giving rides to tourists and performing tricks at zoos
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An online campaign to rescue a six-year-old Asian elephant successfully convinced authorities to remove the animal from abusive handlers at zoos in central China and reunite her with her mother in the southwest.
Molly, who was born in Kunming Zoo in 2016, in the Yunnan provincial capital of the same name, was sent to Henan province at the age of two, ostensibly to diversify their gene pool and prevent inbreeding.
She ended up performing tricks for tourists across multiple zoos in the province, with many videos emerging of her being “trained” by her handler with chains and iron hooks.
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Over the past years, she was videotaped carrying tourists around on her back and performing tricks such as standing on her front legs and spinning a hula hoop at various zoos in Qinyang and its neighbouring cities.
The online campaign, titled “Rescue Molly the Little Elephant”, took off when pictures emerged of a glum-looking Molly with a vacant look in her eyes. The photos were compared to images of her when she was one year old, seeming to show a completely different animal.
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