— Mae Lanna —
Mae Loei, whose name means ‘to float’, (but is also a reference to the province she was originally from), arrived at Elephant Nature Park on February 23 2007. Lek later renamed her Mae Lanna. She is about 27 years old. The funds for her rescue were donated by Nancy Abraham and Singer Rankins from the World Women Work foundation.
85% blind from work-related injuries, the exact details of how she lost her sight are unknown. Humans can make up many excuses for an animals injuries, because sadly, the animal has no voice to tell the true version.
She was originally from Mae Sariang in Mae Hong Son, but was sold and registered in the Loei province. She worked in Cha Am, Krabi and Phi Phi giving rides on the beach. While working doing rubber tree logging in Pang Ngaa province in south Thailand, she lost her sight in a mysterious, unexplained accident. Mae Loei was then moved up to the Issan province in the northeast where she worked street begging and eventually she ended up in Surin where Lek first heard about her.
After being contacted by a monk who was concerned about how this elephant was being treated, Lek sent an Elephant Nature Park team with park vet on a Jumbo Express road trip to Surin, to go rescue her from her life of street begging and abuse. Upon arrival to the park, she was offered food, of which she ate a little, then curiosity and her sense of smell got the better of her and she wished to explore.
She has not bonded with anyone as of yet, but she is gaining confidence in her new surroundings everyday, and in being in the company of so many other elephants. It is wonderful to watch her progress as she moves more confidently through the park and becomes more comfortable with the idea of making friends. Mae Lanna is a long-legged beauty who will surely capture the interest of our resident males as she settles in.
To learn more about the histories and personalities of our elephants, please click on any of the links below.
