Aura

Aura is the daughter of Mae Boon’s and was born in July of 2005. Both of them have been at Elephant Nature Park since Dec 2005 at the owner’s request to give Aura a healthy childhood. Hopefully we will be able to arrange for them both to stay indefinitely.

At the trekking camp, Mae Boon was performing in shows and carrying tourists up and down a mountain. She worked long hours, and during the 15 years spent there she never gave birth, until Aura. At that time Mae Boon was extremely frail and malnourished. The owner sent her away from work to have her baby at the Lampang Animal Hospital.

Shortly after entering the world, Aura also became extremely frail and sick. While in Lampang, Aura cut the top of her trunk and her tongue by reaching through a fence trying to grab something. She still has a scar on her trunk. Afraid that the baby would not survive, the owner requested a move to the Elephant Nature Park.

It turns out that Mae Boon is an old friend of Jokia’s. Back in the days before moving into the park, Jokia was more often at the Elephant Haven. Lek also allowed trekking elephants to come visit and relax in the jungle, and so they had met. With Mae Boon having her baby Aura with her, and Jokia with Mae Perm, the two did not reform any strong bond. There was however, quite a stir amongst the herd the moment Mae Boon arrived. All the elephants gathered around them and spent hours trumpeting, rumbling and squeaking.

Mae Dta Keow, usually a very solitary elephant, took an immediate liking to Aura. Mae Boon rejected her as an auntie, but persistence paid off and now the three are a tight family unit. Neither Mae Boon nor Mae Dta Keow is ever more than a few feet away from little Aura.

Aura is growing into a healthy and playful elephant. Each day after the second bath-time she undergoes positive reinforcement based training with her mahout. She is slowly learning the commands normally taught with pajaan, but without any beatings or psychological abuse but given banana rewards. With luck, she will never have to experience the cruelty of a normal pajaan, and can live out a happy life at Elephant Nature Park.

*****

The 5th March 2009 was a painful day for all at the park. It was a day that all of us knew was eminent, but hoped would never come. Our beloved long-term leased mother and daughter, Mae Boon and Aura, were finally taken back by their owners after 3 years of freedom and fun at Elephant Nature Park. It was incredibly sad to see them being forced onto the truck.