In 1974
George and Victoria Hanneford adopted three six month old female Asian
Elephants from Bangkok, Thailand, and brought them home to the United States.
Raising
a baby elephant is no easy task, especially when there is three of them,
plus two young human children to boot! They have to be bottle fed by hand
(using baby calf bottles) and somebody has to be with them 24 hours a day
until they are able to eat regular food. They are susceptible to all kinds
of diseases and have to be regularly checked by the vet to maintain their
health. This monumental task was carried out by, at first, George and Vicky
alone (with a little help from friends) until Cathy, then George, was old
enough to assist.
When they were finally old enough the Hannefords began the task of training
them to perform tricks and routines using positive reinforcement techniques
they learned in India - rewarding with treats, support and praise, the
same way you would train your dog. The elephants enjoy this time as play
time, just like your own pet does.
The average daily food
requirements for the elephants consists of 200 lb. of grain, 50 lb. of
bran, 10 bales of hay, 30 lb. of bananas, 30 lb. of carrots, 3 dozen apples,
10 loaves of bread, and, to wash it all down, about 150 gallons of water.
They each weigh  about
4 tons and celebrated their 28th birthday in April 1999. As the average
life span of an elephant is about the same as a human, about 75 years,
they are still young, fit, and very healthy. The U.S. Department of Agriculture
and the Florida Freshwater Fish and Wild Life Division have strict laws
and codes concerning the handling, welfare and care taking of all wild
life, such as elephants, and the Hannefords adhere to all laws, regula-
tions, and rules put forth by those agencies, and are properly licensed
as such.
Each year the elephants
get a vacation at the family ranch in central Florida for some well earned
rest and relaxation. For the last ten years they have appeared regularly
at the Fort Lauderdale Swap Shop, though they have also done commercials,
print ads, calen- dars, T.V., and appeared in the Burt Reynolds movie,
"Smokey and the Bandit II".
The Hanneford Family does not condone, or partake in, animal cruelty and
condemns animal abuse. Apart from the elephants, they also own horses,
a tiger, dogs, cats, and many other kinds of animals over the years, and
they treat all of them with the same love and affection as they do to the
human members of their family and consider the animals as part of their
family too, giving them constant care, love, and affection. |
