This baby elephant cried for 5 hours after his mother elephant attacked him twice at a China ZOO.
Shortly after the baby elephant was born at the Shendiaoshan Wild Animal Nature Reserve in China, his mother stepped on him for the first time.
The veterinarians thought and hoped this was an accident and treated the baby before they brought it back to his momma; however, she attacked him again and then the ZOO workers had to separate them.
The calf was very upset and it cried for 5 hours straight before it calmed down, said the employees from the ZOO.
Baby Elephant’s Heart Broken after Mother Rejects Him
The elephant was sad because he couldn’t bear being taken away from its mother and because his mother didn’t want him.
The elephant Zhuang Zhuang was photographed crying and it can be clearly seen how the animal is shedding tears from his eyes down his face.
In one of the heartbreaking photos, the animal can also be seen lying under a blanket and weeping.
The employees of the ZOO have been taking good care for the injured baby elephant and they’re saying he’s on the road to recovery.
The mother however has shown appetite reduction and may experience depression.
Can Elephants Really Cry Because they’re Sad?
The Santa Barbara University of California researched the question of whether elephants can cry and said it depends on the definition about crying we’re using.
They explain that if crying is only described as the ‘shedding of tears’, then yes, all land mammals produce tears foe lubrication of their eyes.
But, when crying is described as ‘tears as response to an emotion’, the answers are less known and it mainly depends on the fact if elephants can experience emotions or not.
Some data does show that they do because elephants are considered to be expressive creatures that show various feelings, including joy, rage, compassion, and grief.
When playing and greeting others by trumpeting and flapping their ears, elephants are showing joy. When a baby elephant is born, the females can be heard blaring and bellowing.
They’re also known to express grief when losing a loved one, similarly to us humans. They mourn their dead by touching their bodies or by circling around them.
In some studies, it has been suggested that they may even have the capacity to relieve memories and even have a concept of death.
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