Britain's last circus elephant Anne signed up for a new life at sanctuary as diggers move in to create her home



On the move: Circus elephant Anne has a new home

Work has begun on Anne the circus elephant’s new home at Longleat Safari Park.



As her owners prepared to sign her over to the care of Longleat and animal welfare groups, workmen and diggers moved in to prepare her new enclosure for her arrival.



The move comes after the Daily Mail revealed the desperate suffering the 59-year-old elephant endured after secret footage emerged of her Romanian groom attacking her with a pitchfork.



Anne will move to her new home within a week and will have three experienced elephant keepers, as well as an elephant specialist, on hand to attend to her every need.



She will live with a herd of rhinos in a large purpose-built enclosure that previously housed five elephants but will have a separate area all to herself.



The ailing elephant, Europe’s oldest, will also have the run of an 80-acre enclosure and a series of paddocks and meadows, as well as water pools, if her arthritis allows.



News of Anne’s imminent rehoming came as her owner, Moira Roberts, said the fallout from the shocking footage captured by Animal Defenders International (ADI) was killing the circus business she runs with her husband Bobby.



She said that the couple had become national hate figures despite the fact that it was their employee Nicolae Nitu who unleashed the brutal attack on Anne.



Last night, she said: ‘It’s difficult to understand why we’re portrayed as we have been over this.



‘I’m responsible for hiring and firing and I thought I was a good judge of character but I’m not.



‘This was an isolated incident and we were horrified to see one of our animals suffer like that. It’s broken my heart.’

The 72-year-old also said that she and her husband loved Anne ‘like a child’ and would never do anything to hurt her.



She added: ‘We will miss Anne, but we are happy she is going to a good place.

Apology: Circus owner Moira Roberts has said sorry for the treatment of Anne the elephant at the hands of groom Nicolae Nitu

‘For the last two years, we have asked many places to rehouse her. But we didn’ t get any help.’



Mrs Roberts also spoke of her fear that the business would go bust and revealed that ticket sales were down 99 per cent as protesters massed outside the circus for the second night in a row.



Yesterday, security at the Bobby Roberts Super Circus, currently in Knutsford, Cheshire, was beefed up, with eight-foot high wire fences and a police presence. Officers from the National Wildlife Crime Unit also visited the circus.



Jonathan Cracknell, director of animal operations at Longleat, in Wiltshire, said that following Wednesday’s successful talks, work was underway to prepare the new enclosure for Anne.



He said: ‘Anne is responding well to veterinary treatment and we are hopeful that she will begin the move in the coming days.



‘But we must make clear that this must all be in her best interests, so we are taking things on a day-by-day basis and will be regularly assessing her progress.



‘While Longleat is the best place for her in the short-term, her needs may change and perhaps in the future she may go elsewhere. We are keeping all options open.



‘However, although she is progressing well, her welfare is paramount at all times and there is still a chance that we may have to put her down if her condition deteriorates.’

He added that Longleat would become Anne’s legal guardians, while an as yet unnamed animal welfare group will become her legal owners.



‘It is incredible that so many different animal welfare groups have come together to help Anne,’ he said.



‘We have been working very closely with the Roberts and they have been extremely amenable.



‘Everyone is in agreement and everyone is singing from the same hymn sheet.’



Jan Creamer, ADI’s chief executive said: ‘We are extremely glad that Annie’s rescue is underway and that Mr Roberts has agreed to allow her to be relocated to Longleat.



‘Here she will be thoroughly assessed over the coming months and we would like to think that if she recovers sufficiently she could one day enjoy the company of other rescued elephants.



‘This wonderful old girl is a true survivor who spent most of her life with other elephants, so it is important for her to have the opportunity to be with other elephants again.’

