Pangea Managing Director, Kate Moore, recently had the privilege of visiting our friends at Elephant Haven – European Elephant Sanctuary (EHEES), close to Limoges, southwest France. Read all about the visit below.
A special thank you to founders Sofie Goetghebeur and Tony Verhulst for their warm hospitality and for allowing me the opportunity to witness firsthand the incredible work they’re doing! It was an inspiring trip, not least because I had the chance to meet their two resident elephants, Delhi and Gandhi.
Elephant Haven was established in 2016 by Sofie and Tony—both former zookeepers— and was born out of a vision to provide elephants in captivity with a peaceful, natural environment where they can live out their remaining years. They currently have space for three Asian female elephants and they are working hard to expand the sanctuary further, as they have 29 hectares of land. This next step will involve the construction of a new barn and an expansion of the outside enclosures from 4 to more than 20 hectares of natural habitat. They also rent another 20 hectares which they use for making hay and which will be more outside enclosures in a later stage.
Hearing the stories of Delhi and Gandhi, (both wild born) and learning about their journeys to Elephant Haven, was truly moving. Delhi (now 41) was transferred from the wild in Vietnam to Ústí nad Labem Zoo in Czechoslovakia in 1986, where she spent 36 years before finally finding her forever home at Elephant Haven. Gandhi, (now 55) another Asian female elephant, arrived at the sanctuary in October 2021. Noone is sure of her exact history, but it I believed that she was caught from the wild in Asia, most likely Thailand and taken to Givskud Zoo in Denmark in 1977, before taken to the former Pont Scorff Zoo in France in 1998. It was wonderful to hear how they have both adapted to their new lives, flourishing under the care of the dedicated team at the sanctuary.
Despite their busy schedules, Sofie and Tony were incredibly generous with their time and insights, and opening up about the challenges they’ve faced. No question was too small, and their advice on construction of facilities was especially invaluable given that we are in the process of finalising our first barn design.
United in our mission to work with zoos and circuses and help Europe’s elephants in need, we look forward to continuing our collaboration.
Find out more about Elephant Haven here and follow them in Instagram here
