Seeing an animal in despair is one of the saddest images on the planet, especially, when there are offerings to prevent it.
An elephant in Venezuela has created shock around the world after images of her in a zoo showed her starving.
Ruperta, the 46-year-old mammal, should have another 20 years left in her, but sadly, lack of food could shorten that dramatically.
What's worse, donations are being made, yet rejected by officials as they believe some will be made with 'bad intentions'.
Ruperta lives in the Caricuao Zoo in the capital, Caracas, but could be another statistic in a shocking line of animal deaths at centres across the country. At least 50 are said to have died in starvation.
The country is currently enduring an economic crisis with three years of recession, low oil prices (its main export), rising food prices and broken hospitals, plus a lack of cash and gold reserves.
Credit: AkoPilipinas Official / Youtube
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"There is food, but there is not enough variety," says Marlene Sifontes - the head of Venezuela's National Parks Institute.
"They are feeding her only with auyama (a kind of pumpkin) and papaya, but it is not covering what she really needs," she added.
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Zoo bosses are believed to have turned down food parcels for Ruperta through fear of unsafe, or poisoned, meals.
They released a statement saying: "Workers are not allowed to receive donations, because while there are people with good feelings, there are others with bad intentions."
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However, this does not explain why the zoo has rejected monetary offers to pay for food themselves.
Elephants eat between 149 and 169kg of food daily, mostly plants and other vegetation. Around 80 percent of their day involves food.
There's also the hydration element, with elephants drinking up to 100 litres of water each day.
Credit: CEN
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Sifontes was keen to point out that this is a nationwide issue: "Although the government refuses to accept it, Ruperta is not a unique case in Caricuao Zoo that is suffering from this condition, and this zoo is not the only one in the country."
Venezuela looks set for deeper crisis, with protests against the government a regular thing.
We can only hope that Ruperta gets better and gets the nutrition that she needs.
Featured Image Credit: AkoPilipinas Official / Youtube