THE FRIENDSHIP OF THE ELEPHANT TARRA AND THE DOG BELLA... A AMIZADE DO ELEFANTE TARRA COM A CACHORRA BELLA...

This is not a newly story, but I just found it recently on the Blog of Jeffrey Moussaieff Masson , the psychoanalist and bestselling author of 9 books on the emotional life of animals. Some times ago I read his book "When Elephants Weep: The Emotional Lives of Animals", and I loved it.
Esta não é uma história atual, mas só agora eu a encontrei no Blog de Jeffrey Moussaieff Masson, psicanalista e escritor best seller de 9 livros sobre a vida emocional dos animais. Tempos atrás eu li e gostei muito do seu livro "Quando os Elefantes Choram - A Vida Emocional dos Animais". Caso seja necessário, peço o favor de clicarem no tradutor abaixo para lerem este post.

A MOVING STORY ABOUT THE FRIENDSHIP BETWEEN TWO SPECIES. (Via original article: "On Elephant Sanctuary, Unlikely Friends", by Steve Hartman, from CBS News, November, 8, 2010)

"When elephants retire, many head for The Elephant Sanctuary in Hohenwald, Tennessee. They arrive one by one, but they tend to live out their lives two-by-two. "Every elephant that comes here searches out someone that she then spends most all of her time with," says sanctuary co-founder Carol Buckley. Those are pachyderm-pachyderm pairs. But perhaps the closest friends of all are Tarra and Bella. That would be Tarra the 8,700 pound Asian elephant. And Bella. The dog. "Bella knows she's not an elephant. Tarra knows she's not a dog," Buckley adds. "But that's not a problem for them."
Bella is one of more than a dozen stray dogs that have found a home at the sanctuary. Most want nothing to do with the elephants and vice versa. But not this odd couple.
"When it's time to eat they both eat together. They drink together. They sleep together. They play together," Buckley says.
Tarra and Bella have been close for years -- but no one really knew how close they were until recently. A few months ago Bella suffered a spinal cord injury. She couldn't move her legs, couldn't even wag her tail. For three weeks the dog lay motionless up in the sanctuary office. And for three weeks the elephant held vigil: 2,700 acres to roam free, and Tarra just stood in the corner, beside a gate, right outside that sanctuary office.
"She just stood outside the balcony - just stood there and waited," says Buckley. "She was concerned about her friend."
Then one day, sanctuary co-founder Scott Blais carried Bella onto the balcony so she and Tarra could at least see each other. "Bella's tail started wagging. And we had no choice but bring Bella down to see Tarra," Blais says. They visited like that every day until Tarra could walk. Today, their love -- and trust -- is stronger than ever. Bella even lets Tarra pet her tummy - with the bottom of her enormous foot. They harbor no fears, no secrets, no prejudices. Just two living creatures who somehow managed to look past their immense differences.
Take good look at this couple, America. Take a good look world. If they can do it - what's our excuse?"

Elephant and Dog Best Friends - Tarra and Bella - (CBS Evening News, 2009-01-02)



Another beautiful video from the site The Elephant Sanctuary.



Tarra & Bella had some fun playing in the snow.



SAD END TO AN UNCOMMON LOVELY FRIENDSHIP...
Precious Bella has died, likely as the result of a coyote attack, in October 26, 2011, leaving Tarra to mourn the loss of her best friend. Sanctuary caretakers believe Tarra found Bella's body after the attack and carried her to the spot they often spent time together. "The idea that she couldn't leave that body and brought it back home is just heartbreaking, but so inspiring," Robert Atikinson, CEO of the Elephant Sanctuary, told Nashville's WKRN News 2.
Bella was first spotted at the Sanctuary in the fall of 2003. The Elephant Sanctuary set up a tribute page in honor of the deceased canine. Visite Bella's Tribute Page HERE and comments HERE

Tarra and Bella: Elephant loses man's best friend