Story update - One day old baby elephant settling in

18 Oct 07 - By Lek Chailert

I want to let you know about these two elephants, mother and baby. They were working at the trekking camp near to the park. Today I just find out that the mahout who brought her didn't tell the full story to us. The mother elephant was at work on the very day she gave birth, As she transported tourists on her back her water broke and she was screaming in pain. He mahout though she was just peeing and continued to work her. He then chained her to trees on a steep hill, about 4 kilometers away. This is where she gave birth. No one was there to help. Earlier he heard the elephant mother screaming from far away as he walked to bring her back to work in the morning. He found the baby in a mud hole at the foot hill far from where the mother. Both legs of the elephant mother have tide together so she can not rescued her baby.

Lek, curious elephant and volunteers inspect the new comer

The Karen mahout kept the baby in the jungle all day without water or milk and was in a very poor state. Along with a friend they carried it to our park in a pick-up truck. The baby come with out mother and arrived at the park about 9:30 pm on 16 October. We asked them to bring the mother who rejoined her newborn 2 hours later.

The baby was in deep shock, dehydrated. and had a dangerously high temperature. Her heart beat was erratic. She hardly moved and we think we will lose her during the night. Three volunteers kept an overnight watch on the baby dripping milk into it's tiny mouth and offering comfort.

The mother elephant stood as a zombie. She kept searching with her trunk to touch her baby then she would walk away. Her eyes looked so sad and empty. She is called Mae Noi and is about 20 years old, but she look much older and not healthy at all.

We are now trying to give the baby life and we will trying to do any best way to lift her spirits.

The volunteers do an excellent job in caring for this infant. They help to left the baby stand up every half hour when the baby waking up.

After 12 hours the baby with us after she sleep enough she start to drink lots of milk, We also squeeze the milk from the mother elephant and put in the bottle for her. At first mother didn’t like this and tryed to push us away. Later we made her busy with bananas and found this is the easiest way to get milk from her.

Photos of the baby elephant