————   Another Abused and Damaged Elephant is Rescued   ————

Posted by Elephant Nature Foundation on December 17, 2009

Her name is Ratree, which means "midnight" and sadly signifies her dark and abusive past. She is about 35 but looks much older. Her right eye is a deep chocolate brown but the expression is blank. Her left is the sad remnants of what was once a seeing eye. The end of her tail is missing. She is covered with abrasions. The top of her head is ridden with deep infected holes inflicted with that dreaded implement of control, the ankus hook. She walks like a drunken zombie, shuffling along quickly, much quicker than you would think she could move, her back legs almost tripping over each other. But walking is easier than standing, Ratree could be knocked down by the slightest flick of a trunk. She is afraid to lay down at night, as it is too painful and stressful to attempt to get back up and she is unable do it without assistance.

After years and years of excessive abuse all that remained was the battered outer shell of what was once a majestic and beautiful creature who had the capacity to feel intense emotions like love or fear or sadness. There was nothing left that could be taken from her; she could be exploited no more. Her owners decided to get rid her when she could no longer provide an income for them.

Lek is getting a reputation at the annual Surin Elephant Round-Up for rescuing elephants who are incredibly mentally or physically damaged and would have no chance elsewhere. Every year, even before she gets to Surin, she starts receiving phone calls from eager owners ready for assistance. Sadly, there is no shortage of horrifically abused elephants and this year there were three in particular who were very bad off. It was extremely difficult for Lek to decide which one she could rescue, as there wasn't the space available for all three. While in the process of making this decision, one of the elephants actually died, as the injuries they had sustained were more painful than they could continue to live with.

The journey from Surin was long and exhausting and Ratree couldn't sleep on the truck. After arriving at Elephant Nature Park, she spent the first two nights at the medical center so we could observe and treat her. However, she didn't lay down to sleep there either. Worried that she wasn't laying down because of the cold cement floor, she was moved to a quiet spot with an incline. The hope was that Ratree would lie down near it for support, but sadly she chose a flat spot to lie down and in the morning couldn't get up on her own and had to be pushed up. From that night on she has not laid down at all, choosing to lean against a small tree for support, only dozing, not getting really restful sleep.

Since Ratree's arrival she has been devouring everything that is put in front of her as if she is afraid that the food will run out. She is settling down a bit, as the first day she wandered freely she rushed around the Park at speeds not thought possible for her. Until Ratree gets a bit stronger, it has been decided that it is probably best to keep her away from the other elephants so she does not get hurt. She is quite unstable right now and this could happen very easily. When the time is right we will allow her to approach Mae Tee and Mae Kham Geao first, as they would be perfect candidates for possible friends, both being gentle-tempered and slow-moving.

Some of the injuries and psychological trauma that Ratree has sustained are permanent and she will never be able to recover from them, and it will be a while before we will be able to see her true temperament and personality. It does seem that she has the capacity and desire to connect with other elephants, which will be very healing for her. We hope that we can help her to feel that she can trust people once again as well, but all of this remains to be seen. Even if she never feels completely comfortable with people again, this is ok, as here at Elephant Nature Park she can just be an elephant and won't be forced in to any situations that would make her feel uncomfortable. Hopefully, we can at least make Ratree feel that she is safe and that her suffering is finally over.

Ratree's rescue was sponsored by three generous individuals: American Jeff Cantrell and a father and daughter (also from America), Lee and Juliet West.