Heroin-Addict Elephant to Rejoin Herd After Rehab
Date: 31-Aug-07
Country: CHINA
"Big Brother", a bull elephant that once "lived peacefully"
with his herd near the China-Myanmar border in Yunnan province,
was caught by traders in 2005, the China Daily said on
Thursday.
"To control it so that it could lead the herd to where they
wanted, the traders kept feeding it bananas laced with drugs,"
the paper said.
The traders, however, were caught trying to sell Big
Brother and his herd after a tip-off to forest police.
By that time Big Brother had developed a raging heroin
addiction and posed a danger to people if denied its fix, the
paper said, citing police.
A drooling and twitching Big Brother had to be transported
to a special park in the neighbouring island province of Hainan
for treatment, after cold turkey proved so tortuous at a local
centre that "even its iron chain could not contain it", the
paper said.
After being diagnosed a heroin addict, park authorities in
Hainan spent a year gradually weaning "Big Brother" off its
dependence through methadone, regular bathing and massage.
Now clean, Big Brother will soon be returned home, the
paper said.
