A pregnant elephant died on Wednesday in Malappuram, Kerala, after facing one of the most brutal forms of animal abuse known in India. The animal was wandering in search of food, when local residents fed it a pineapple filled with explosives, a common tactic for hunting wild boar.

The sad incident came to light after a district forestry officer named Mohan Krishnan revealed the details on his Facebook account .

The mammal had left the forest and headed towards the town, in order to find food, unfortunately it met a tragic death.

Pregnant elephant was fed explosives

While the elephant ate the fruit supplied by the locals, the firecracker exploded in her mouth causing several injuries and severe pain.

Mohan wrote on Facebook :

She trusted everyone. When the pineapple she ate exploded, she must have been surprised not thinking about herself, but about the little one she was going to give birth to in 18 to 20 months.

The loud explosion was so powerful that his tongue and mouth were severely injured, and he walked through the town in great pain and hunger. Due to his injuries, it was impossible for him to eat, but even in the midst of his pain, the gentle animal did not hurt anyone, nor did it cause any harm.

To try to ease her pain, the elephant stood in the Velliyar River, to float and let her mouth and tongue feel some kind of relief. The officer said that when he saw the 15-year-old animal, it was submerged in water and that it may have been doing this to avoid insects in its wounds.

The officers in charge of the rescue brought two elephants to try to drag the female to shore, but before completing the maneuver, she died in the water on May 27.

Mohan wrote:

“Everyone was surprised, the captive elephants quickly realized what had happened, they shed tears. I felt that the river began to boil with those tears, it was a protest of the river against selfish humanity ».

Dr. David Abraham, assistant to the Thrissur Forest Veterinary Office, was commissioned to perform the autopsy and revealed the details of his death.

After the autopsy, it was when the authorities realized that the mammal was pregnant and that the cause of death was suffocation, because the water had entered the lungs and windpipe.

Mohan wrote:

“The doctor who performed the autopsy said while crying that she was not alone. Although the mask helped hide his expression, I understood his pain.

Despite the fact that the doctor had a lot of experience performing autopsies on elephants, he was very moved to learn this sad and tragic story.

El dr. David Abraham, dijo a TNIE :

“This is the first time that I was so moved by holding a baby fetus in my hands. Initially, none of us knew that the elephant was pregnant. After looking at her heart and seeing the amniotic fluid, I realized that I was pregnant.

Finally, the forest department let the animal’s body rest, and took it back to the forest in a truck, where it was cremated by the authorities.

The animal had the farewell it deserved, everyone gave it their respect, bowed before it and prayed for its humble soul.

Mohan wrote:

“We cremated her there. Even when the fire engulfed her, we prayed for her, as if she were part of humanity, all I could say was: ‘sister… I’m sorry.’

Although this is a macabre event, it is not the first time that an elephant has died in similar circumstances, so the authorities will increase investigations to prevent further events.