NILGIRIS: A two-month-old female elephant calf that was brought to Theppakkadu elephant camp in Mudumalai Tiger Reserve (MTR) from the Sathymangalam Tiger Reserve (STR) a week ago is keeping good health. It had lost its mother and was abandoned by the herd, forcing the forest department to rescue it.
The calf is kept in a kraal (a wooden enclosure) in Theppakkadu and is being taken care of by mahout Raman with the help of two others. It is being monitored without any other human presence except for Veterinary Assistant Surgeon K Rajesh Kumar.
Sources said, “There were no external injuries on the calf and it is drinking one liter of lactogen and glucose along with other multivitamin supplements once in two hours. Subsequently, she takes a nap regularly.
Once in a while the baby elephant comes out of the kraal and plays with the mahout and assistants (cavadis ) . This indicates she is active and healthy.”
“We have been keeping her in a hygienic kraal since there is a high chance of her getting infections. However, the animal is healthy now. The mahout cleans the entire body of the calf using warm water and cloth as it is not safe to take her to the river,” said an official of the forest department.
"We have not taken blood samples to check if she has any disease and if required it will be done in the upcoming months,” he added.