Donate your Christmas trees to the elephants

Fairview Observer Staff | Nashville Tennessean

Elephants are the world’s largest land animal, which means that have big appetites. In fact, elephants can consume approximately 150 pounds of fruits, vegetables, grain and plant material each day, including Christmas trees, which contain sweet resin that is high in nutrients.

Middle Tennessee residents are invited to donate their Christmas trees to the elephants at The Elephant Sanctuary in Tennessee. Caregivers will deliver the donated trees to the habitats to provide enrichment and supplement the elephants’ decreased foraging opportunities during the winter months.

All ornaments, hooks, garland, tinsel, and decorations must be removed from Christmas trees prior to donation. Trees containing flocking, paint or dye will not be accepted.

Fairview resident David Dodoro will be coordinating the collection of fully undecorated Christmas trees from Fairview area residents starting Jan. 2 until Jan 10 to deliver to the Sanctuary. You can contact him via his Facebook page or send a message via Messenger with your addresses when you have your tree ready to be picked up.

The elephants’ habitats are not open to the public for visitation, but you can visit the amazing Visitors Center in downtown Hohenwald. For more information on how these beautiful animals are cared for, visit Elephants.com.