Holiday Brochures | Contact us

Browse Old Articles

Safari of the week

CLICK HERE TO SEE FULL DETAILS OR TO BOOK.

Elephants calves being trained for reintroduction into the wild in India - You can help

17/06/2009 09:31:37

The elephant orphans cost $500 a month to feed. WTI need your help to keep these elephants in milk.

The Wildlife Trust of India (WTI) is tending for 7 elephant calves at its Centre for Wildlife Rehabilitation and Conservation (CWRC), in Kaziranga National Park in Assam. These elephant calves were separated from or abandoned by their herds, and attempts to reunite them with their natal herds failed for a variety of reasons.

These elephants need your help

They cost $500 per month to feed. If you can help, please click this link to donate.

They are of various ages and the rehabilitation, a 'soft release' programme, will take few years to complete. The calves are being encouraged to form a mini herd of their own and are taken for walks in the wild as a group. The keepers will gradually separate themselves from the elephants and will even use methods to push them away from human beings. Deepa, who is the oldest calf but is not yet 5 years old, appears to be taking on the role of matriarch, but the calves all display very different characters.

The Elephants

Sikom: This male calf got separated from his herd
when he was swept away by a current of the Jia
Bhoroli River near Nameri National Park, Assam.
The calf was rescued by Forest Department.

Sikom was around 3 months old and very healthy
when admitted to CWRC on 24th May 2007. Now,
he is 2 years and 6 months old. He is very
smart, sharp, active and alert. He has learned
make mock attacks and make a strangers run
for their life. Sikom has a habit of calling the
person close to him by waving his trunk (as if he
is calling you) and will then push the person hard
with his trunk. Once he recognizes someone then
he is friendly. His carers say he is unpredictable.

Hamren: This male elephant calf was rescued on
6th May 2008 by Assam Forest department in
Assam. He was 2 years old when handed over to CWRC on 7th May 2008. He was severely injured
and weak when brought to CWRC. Hamren was
separated from his natal herd when his herd
entered the village to raid crops and was chased
away by locals. Previously it was planned to hand
over the calf to Forest Department and later was decided to reintegrate him into the wild. It was allowed to interact with other elephant calves at
CWRC from January 2009 to initiate social
bonding.

Hamren is seen most of the time with Deepa.
During their daily walks also he prefers to be
alone and roam alone in the forest. He still has
the character of wild elephant in him as he runs
away from human beings. He does not even
come close to the carers.

Tinku: This male elephant calf was rescued by
Forest Department from a tea garden drain in
Borgang range on 24th October 2007. He was 3
months old when he was handed over to CWRC by
the Forest Department. Tinku is now 1 year and 8
months old. Tinku is an average elephant.

Deepa: This female elephant calf was 3 months
old when she was rescued from a tea estate on
7th December 2004. She was supposed to be
released in 2007 however was detected with
tuberculosis and hence was kept back in the centre.
A later blood test confirmed that the TB had
disappeared. She is the oldest elephant at the
centre and appears to take the role of the
matriarchal female. All the calves at CWRC follow
her. She guards the calves at night when they
sleep. She is 4 years 9 months.

Soni: This female elephant calf was split from her family when they were chased away from a village when crop raiding. Soni was left behind as she was very small and weak. The calf was later found roaming lost. The calf was kept by the villagers
and later handed it over to the Forest Department, who tried to treat Soni with the help of a local vet and then attempted to reunite with its natal herd, but unfortunately they could not be found. Later
WTI vets were called for the treatment as the calf was almost dying.

Soni was 4 months old when she was admitted to CWRC on 30th September 2007 and her wounds were treated in approximately 15 days. She was
then introduced to Sikom and Deepa and they readily accepted her. Soni is now 2 years old. She
is very timid and not very active.

Tikla: The male elephant calf was rescued from a drain on a tea estate. He was rescued on 20th September 2007. Once again his natal herd could not be found, so the calf was handed over to CWRC for protection. He was just 15 days old when admitted to CWRC and was very healthy.

Now, Tikla is 1 year and 9 months old. He is the most mischievous calf among the 6 calves at CWRC, and is active, friendly and very curious.

Junmoni: This female elephant calf is the youngest at CWRC. She was found abandoned and was rescued from Jorhat. She was 1 month old and healthy when she was admitted in CWRC on 20th September 2008, and she is now 10 months old. She has some deformity in one leg, however that it does not seem to cause any problems for her. Junmoni does interact with other elephants but does not stay with them for very long. She always follows her caretaker Raju Kuttum wherever he goes, and she is very particular about her milk timings. She will start demanding milk if her carer is late. Also she will stay out of her fence only for 2 hrs i.e. from 2 pm to 4pm and after that becomes restless to go back to her enclosure. She is also learning to eat grass.

CLICK HERE TO SUPPORT

These elephants need your help

They cost $500 per month to feed. If you can help, please click this link to donate.

Read the comments about this article and leave your own comment

It is worrying that Deepa was diagnosed with TB. This is usually a disease of older animals. A single blood test may not be sufficient to confirm absence of the disease. A trunk wash is a better test for presence, and multiple tests are required before it can be said that the TB is not present.

Junmoni's leg deformity may not appear to cause any problems at this stage, but she is still a small elephant. As she grows more weight will be exerted on the foot, and is likely to cause severe health problems.

Posted by: Milly | 20 Jun 2009 09:23:53

To post a comment you must be logged in.
CLICK HERE TO LOG IN AND POST A COMMENT

New user? Register here

Name:
Email:

Click join and we will email you with your password. You can then sign on and join the discussions right away.

Created by Wild Dog Design & Bright Interactive

Visit sponsor

Visit sponsor