As it turns out, Paul McCartney learned that even being a Beatle doesn’t necessarily mean your fame can help end suffering.

It was only two years ago when Paul McCartney made headlines for taking initiative to defend an animal rights case which seemed to have a happy ending.

When former Beatles member, Sir Paul McCartney, went to India in 2012 he encountered Sunder; a 14-year old performance elephant. Sunder showed definite signs of abuse including physical ailments such as, facial injuries of the ear and eyes, and scars covering it’s massive body. In addition to lacerations, this helpless being was shackled up at a shed at the Jyotiba Temple and had limited movement.

Driven by his passion for animal rights, McCartney wrote a letter to the Indian Forest Minister urging him to free the animal.

This lead to viral online petitioning for Sunder’s freedom, which encouraged a supposed release of the elephant from shed to wildlife refuge.

However, in a recent investigation by People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA), it was learned that Sunder was not only kept in chains once more, but was confined to a smaller shack where the elephant was unable to lie down. In a video taken by members of PETA, Sunder was being beaten by handlers and looked ill.

I urge all those reading to contact the Indian Ministry of Environment and Forests and speak on behalf of Sunder. His contact info is below:

Kumar Sanjeev, Indian Ministry of Environment and Forests, at psmos-mef@nc.in

This article originally appears on Ecorazzi

Ecorazzi covers news and gossip on celebrities and notables in support of the environment and humanitarian causes. You can follow us on Twitter and Facebook.

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Ever been smitten with corrugated cardboard? You’re about to be absolutely taken with recycled and scrap corrugation.

The creative gentlemen at Graypants have molded cardboard scraps into an irresistible collection of lights; some are modeled after the four largest moons of Jupiter, some are shaped like beans or bells, some resemble discs, but all are a gorgeous vehicle to cast graphic corrugated shadows across your space.

Desire the exotic allure of a rustic mount, but don’t desire blood on your hands? Hello Cardboard Safari. These elegant contortions of cardboard still require some (simple) assembly, so you will still feel like you earned the pleasure of inviting Billy, Buck, Fred, Eyan, or Robbie to take a perch on your wall (and with lovable names like that – who wouldn’t want to invite these gorgeous gentlemen over?!).

If you prefer the look of cardboard, but with the softness of two hundred thread count cotton and a sweet donation to charity, check this out.

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Keeping animals captive for pleasure, profit or curiosity is a human tradition going back as far as Ancient Egypt. But what kind of tradition is it? Do zoos deserve a public-relations makeover to be firmly embraced within an eco-conscious outlook on the natural world – or are they a relic of unhappier times?

This is the question currently fueling many column inches, following the release of a report by the UK’s Department for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs looking at 4,500 female elephants in zoos. The statistics could hardly be more damning:

In the wild, female African elephants frequently live beyond 50 years old: in captivity, the average age is just 19.

Baby elephants born in captivity have a much lower chance of survival – over 50% don’t make it past the age of 1.

Approximately four-fifths of captive elephants suffer from foot problems.

In summary, the report suggests that being born in captivity actually reduces an elephant’s chances of survival.

Speaking on the BBC Radio 4’s Today Programme, the RSPCA voiced their disgust to the British and Irish Association of Zoos and Aquariums. It’s important to note that both these organizations funded the research – and on behalf of BIAZA, Dr Miranda Stevenson of Edinburgh Zoo promised the research would be used to improve animal husbandry. (A particular problem is the death rate of newborns: this is why the average life expectancy is so shockingly low).

Praising or condemning all zoos together is something of an injustice. Nevertheless, a pattern emerges. Zoos have always prided themselves on providing a service for their animals: a life safe from predators, a stable habitat, a steady supply of food and consequently, more relaxation time than they could enjoy in the wild. This has been promoted as very much a good thing.

In contrast, the DEFRA report now points to obesity as a major problem for captive elephants. Without enough physical or mental challenge, their bodies and minds suffer – exactly like those of the creatures looking after them.

Should we treat animals in zoos the way we’ve been treating ourselves?

Image: Tambako the Jaguar

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