While there are <a href="http://vt.co/news/world/three-unlucky-poachers-have-been-eaten-after-breaking-into-south-african-nature-reserve/">poachers</a> out in the world killing elephants to remove their tusks and <a href="http://vt.co/animals/stories/worlds-last-male-northern-white-rhino-just-died/">sell the ivory</a>, the animals show much more empathy towards our species. Trainer Darrick Thomson, originally from Toronto, works at Elephant Nature Park in Chiang Mai, Thailand. It was there that he formed an unbreakable bond with a young elephant named Kham Lha, ever since she was rescued and brought to the reserve in 2015. "Kham Lha was in a really bad way when she came to us," Darrick told MailOnline. "She had been tied up and forced to undergo cruel training known as crushing to prepare her to work in the tourist industry. We freed her and helped her to recover. She became really close to me and we formed a strong bond." To show the strong bond that the two share, Darrick waded out into the river, splashing as if he was in danger. As soon as she saw her friend in trouble, she Kham Lha rushed to help him out - as you can see in the video below: [[jwplayerwidget||http://content.jwplatform.com/videos/jPTrWp8g-Q0L14jDU.mp4||jPTrWp8g]] "I went in the river to show just how remarkable the relationship with humans is," Darrick explained, "and that if you show warmth and kindness to them, they will treat you well, too." A spokesman at the Elephant Nature Park said: "We're all really pleased with Kham Lha's progress and how well she's adapted. "She's now a happy young elephant. The video shows just how close she is to Darrick and it's an important lesson to be kind to animals." It just goes to show that while our species has, in parts, been cruel to animals like Kham Lha, they can show us more empathy than we perhaps deserve.

Brave baby elephant rushes to save man who is simulating drowning in a river

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