Circus Elephant Rolls In Snow In Minus 5 Russian Winter

Story ByAnastasia Smirnova, Sub EditorJoseph Golder,AgencyCentral European News 

Video Credit: CEN/@plohie_novosti_mc

This is the moment two elephants from a zoo are seen walking down a Russian street – with one of them rolling in the snow and the other pushing its trainer across the tarmac as he tries to shove it backwards.

Local media report two Indian elephants, Carla, 45, and Roni, 50, were taken outside for a walk in the snow before travelling from Yekaterinburg Circus, in the city of Yekaterinburg in western Russia’s Sverdlovsk Oblast to the second city St Petersburg where they will perform in the Italian Circus.

Picture Credit: CEN/@plohie_novosti_mc

In the videos, one of the elephants can be seen pushing its unnamed trainer across the road with its head. The trainer is sent sliding across the icy road as he tries in vain to stop the beast by pushing against its head.

Another clip shows one of the elephants walking up to a pile of snow in reported temperatures of -5 degrees Celsius before lying down in it. Circus staff can then be seen pulling it back with ropes.

The Yekaterinburg circus said in a statement: “The elephants have their own character and emotions, they are very smart. They walked outside and got very happy from seeing the snow, the trees and the pedestrians whom they took for spectators. Roni stayed by one of the trees while Carla walked towards a pile of snow.”

Video Credit: CEN/@plohie_novosti_mc

Vadim Gorelykh from the local police denied reports the animals had escaped saying: “The animal was not walking freely on the 8th Marta Street.”

The street was reportedly closed off for the elephants to take their walk,

Reports state the animals are used to long journeys in a trailer have been taken on a 16,000-kilometre (9,950-mile) trip this year to perform in major cities.

Netizen ‘Karolina Bokova’ said: “I think all the circus around the globe should get dismissed.”

And ‘Avdot Karpov’ added: “Elephants deserve to be free.”

While ‘Tatiana Bekker’ commented: “All this elephant was trying to get was freedom. Freedom and nothing else.”

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