VIDEO: Why you should never ride elephants on holiday

Horrific footage has emerged online of a man mercilessly beating an elephant in India.

In the shocking video, a man whom the charity Wildlife SOS say is known for inflicting cruelty on elephants he has illegally bought in Jaipur, can be seen mercilessly beating an elephant with an axe and burning its feet.

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The barbaric elephant trafficker allegedly keeps the six-year-old elephant called Suman chained up inside a dark concrete enclosure until she can be sold to a circus.

Suman's mother, Chanda, is reportedly used to give tourists rides around Amer Fort, in Jaipur, and it's claimed the father elephant was sold to labourers.

Why you should never ride an elephant on holiday

When travelling to somewhere like Asia, it can be tempting to sign up for an elephant-riding excursion. But the aforementioned story is a stark reminder that you should NEVER ride elephants on holiday.

Sure, getting up close and personal with one of the world's most magnificent creatures will make for some great selfies on Instagram - but doing so is both dangerous and inhumane.

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According to PETA (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals), more than 3,000 elephants - including babies -are held captive in elephant tourist-attraction 'orphanages' and 'parks' across Asia, and the number is growing.

Shocking footage shows an elephant having its feet burnt and being beaten with an axe.

"The animals are beaten into submission when young and then forced to let travellers take rides on their backs and to perform confusing and sometimes painful tricks, including walking on tightropes, balancing on two legs on a small drum, painting pictures, and dancing," says PETA.

"If tourists knew what elephants endured for their vacation photos, they would hit 'delete' - on both the pictures and the industry.

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"In a survey of 13,000 people, one of the primary reasons travellers gave for wanting to patronise elephant rides and shows was a 'love of animals'.

'But anyone who shares any concern for the dwindling elephant population or captive elephant abuse should work to end these tourist attractions -not fund them."

For more information on elephant cruelty, and to read PETA's 'Nine Jumbo Reasons Not to Ride on an Elephant', visit www.peta.org