From cruelty to compassion - help us replace suffering temple elephants with animatronic ones

A pioneering initiative by PETA India to change the lives of India’s temple elephants is underway, and you can be part of it! For the first time ever, a practical, humane alternative to the brutal treatment of live elephants offers hope for genuine change.

Action for Elephants UK is proud to be part of this initiative and is raising funds to buy a mechanical elephant to donate to a temple in Kerala. For its part, the temple pledges never again to hire live elephants. In this way, temple by temple, attitudes and practices start to change, setting the stage for a more compassionate future where live elephants are no longer used.

Background

Elephants have been used for centuries by temples in India as part of traditional ceremonies, but although they’re meant to be revered in Hinduism they are treated with horrific cruelty and lifelong abuse. Usually captured from the wild, they are first tortured into submission, then kept in camps in hellish conditions, forced to endure profound emotional and physical anguish.

Many exhibit neurotic behaviour and are plagued by chronic foot problems and osteoarthritis from the endless hours spent chained on hard surfaces, as well as many other painful ailments and disfigurements. These tormented animals are treated like equipment, rented out and transported in the back of trucks on gruelling journeys during which they’re unable to lie down. Then, they’re thrust into noisy, chaotic festivals and ceremonies, where they’re forced to carry humans on their weary backs, sometimes despite injuries, lameness, or blindness – ailments common to many of these elephants.

Because the ordeal of captivity causes extreme frustration and stress, elephants sometimes lash out in an attempt to break free, causing chaos that could harm anyone around them and destroy property. Such episodes are becoming more common: from 2007 to July 2024, 540 people were killed in Kerala due to elephants running amok at temple processions. In the past two years alone, 742 people have been injured in similar incidents (Heritage Animal Task Force data).

At last, a gamechanger!

In 2023, a remarkable blend of tradition and technology saw the creation of a genuine gamechanger – the first robotic elephant, launched by PETA India. Designed to perform the ceremonial roles assigned to live elephants, it is incredibly lifelike – it can shake its head, flap its ears, move its eyes, and even spray water from its trunk, providing an authentic experience for devotees while promoting empathy and compassion.

Most significantly, when a temple receives a robotic elephant it pledges to never again hire live elephants. If the temple owns an elephant, it will be retired to a sanctuary or sent for specialised veterinary treatment.

As of August 2024, PETA India had donated four robotic elephants to temples in Kochi, Thiruvananthapuram, and Thrissur in Kerala, and Mysuru in Karnataka. The response to each of them has been overwhelmingly positive, and they have garnered significant media coverage, including Reuters, CNN, The Telegraph, and Hindustan Times, informing millions about this revolutionary initiative.

Your donation

By donating to this project you will be supporting an alternative to the cruel treatment of temple elephants. The robot is seen as instrumental in changing hearts and minds, moving the needle forward to the day when the exploitation of elephants in temples is replaced by a more humane and ethical approach to religious ceremonies.

Our goal is to raise £5,700, the cost of production and transport of the elephant. Before we launched we received a generous offer from an advocate to match every donation up to £2,500 – this means YOUR GIFT WILL BE AUTOMATICALLY DOUBLED, helping us reach our goal faster!

Please take action for suffering elephants and be part of this gamechanger!

And please sign these petitions:

Help Spare Elephants Cruel Performances

Help End Elephant Rides in Rajasthan India

Refuse to ride / retire old & sick elephants