Tong Daeng Arrives to Reunite with Mom and Meet New Little Brother

On Friday September 12th, Pom, Chom, Dr. Prasit and a group of lucky volunteers got to embark on a Jumbo Express to go retrieve a young elephant named Tong Daeng who had been injured approximately 18 months earlier when he fell off of a 50 gallon drum during an elephant show. When he fell, he broke his left front leg in the shoulder/elbow area. The break healed badly and his leg is deformed. He has a slight limp and when he is tired he drags his foot a little. Since that time he has not been working, but staying in his owners' village. Underweight and frail, he is between 4½ to 6 years old. His owners say he is 6, but he is very small compared to our young, healthy robust eles. Aura and Tong Jan, both 3½ years old, are almost as big as him!

After a tiring seven-hour journey by truck, he finally arrived at Elephant Nature Park. He was able to get down from the truck without much trouble. He was immediately offered a big pile of bananas which he gobbled up with relish! There were many people and dogs around as it is always an exciting moment when a new elephant arrives at the Park. He didn't seem too distressed by all of the strangers around him or the dogs, he seemed pretty calm. After having his fill of bananas, Tong Daeng was taken down to the river to see if he wanted to have a drink or actually get in to cool down a bit. He tentatively stuck his trunk into the cool water, but that was about it. No splashing, no playing.

One very exciting aspect of Tong Daeng's arrival was that his mother was already here! She is Mae Tong Dee, who arrived for maternity leave at the end of may with her newest baby, Tong Tae. It was decided that it would probably be ok to put Tong Daeng with his mom and little brother and the lucky auntie who slept with them, Mae Boon Ma. We weren't sure how mom would react when she saw her older calf, but after some curious sniffs, all of them settled in well. Younger and older brother took some time to get to know each other and they had an uneventful night.

The next morning, Tong Daeng was taken with his family out to an area of the Park where they would be undisturbed for the most part. It was such a beautiful sight to see how well he was re-accepted by his mom and how well he fit into the family. Another of Tong Tae's aunties was there to join them, Sri Nuan, who also took Tong Daeng's arrival in stride, and part time auntie Dok Ngern was with them on this morning as well, and she really seemed to take to this young gentle boy. Young tusker Tong Suk came up to inspect the new arrival and introduce himself and was quite polite. Later on Aura had to stop by and say hello and she and Tong Daeng seemed to instantly enjoy each others' company.

And so, this new young boy who had had quite a bit of bad luck in the past, had finally hit a streak of good luck upon arriving at Elephant Nature Park. Tong Daeng has settled right into a family group and is enjoying the nurturing and stability of his mom and a collection of various aunties and is bonding with his little brother (incidentally, the two boys are really getting along great!). This is a very healing environment for him to be in, considering what he has been through in his young life. Everyday will be a new adventure for him as he gradually meets the rest of the herd, gains more confidence in his new surroundings, and becomes healthy and robust with good food and exercise. Hopefully his days of exploitation have come to an end and he will never have to leave the safety and sanctuary of Elephant Nature Park.

Ele Gossip: Who Will Be the Auntie for Tong Kham?

There has been quite an "auntie shuffle" going on around here in regards to Tong Kham, the little bull who was born at the Park in late may. Malai Tong was the first contestant, but her time with Tong Kham and his mom was cut short when she had to have her landmine-injured foot treated for an infection. She is being kept in a confined area for the time being so her foot can be kept clean, dry and heal properly. Sadly, this puts her out of the auntie competition. Now there are three other interested females spending time with Tong Kham and Mae Boonchu. Dok Ngern spends a fair amount of time with the pair, since she was pushed out of the Tong Dee family group by the older, more dominant Sri Nuan, who finally succumbed to her maternal desires and took up an auntie role once again. Dok Ngern is not exactly sure who she wants to commit to, so she divides her time between the three main family groups.

Another elephant who has gotten very close with Mae Boonchu and Tong Kham is Mae Dta Keow. She has a weakness for leased moms and babies and tries to get an auntie position whenever she can, but she is also a bit shy, so if there are more dominant females vying for the position, she will back off. In this case she is lucky, as all other interested parties are either younger or as shy as her, so she is enjoying spending a good part of her days with little Tong Kham and his mom. The last ele to mention who has taken an interest in mom and baby is one of our older girls, Mae Geao, who has been a loner since her arrival. It is lovely to see her taking an interest in other elephants and mother Mae Boonchu seems quite fond of her. None of these three females have taken on a full time position as of yet, but they all seem comfortable with each other, and we can hope that their bonds only grow stronger.

Tong Kham is getting braver and more curious every day in regards to exploring his surroundings and is boldly venturing further and further away from mom. Of course never too far that he can't run back to her quickly when he gives himself a scare! He is getting more adept at using his trunk and delights at picking things up. Like toddlers of all species, he puts everything he touches into his mouth. He loves going down to the river to splash around when it is time for him and his mom to go for their afternoon baths. At this time the river is a bit deep and the current is strong so Mae Boonchu is extra protective of her young calf, not letting him go too far out so he doesn't get swept away. None of the "aunties" accompany the pair to the river at this time, but possibly in the future.

Ele Gossip: More on the Tong Tae Family Group

Before the arrival of Tong Daeng, life for Tong Tae and his family was already exciting with many of the Elephant Nature Park females vying for the position of auntie. At this time resident white elephant Mae Boon Ma is in the number-one auntie position, with Sri Nuan running a close second and Dok Ngern in tow on most days. When the weather is dry enough for Malai Tong to have a wander, she immediately joins Tong Tae, Mae Tong Dee and the other aunties.

Dok Ngern is still unsure who she wants to be with full time, and on some mornings she runs around in confusion roaring in distress, trying to figure out who she should go to first: Tong Tae, Tong Jan, or Tong Kham! She seems to make time for all of them on most days, but these days seems to spend most of her time with Tong Tae, then Tong Jan. A while back she was spending a lot of time with Tong Kham, but she has cooled off with them these days. Recently, Mae Boon and Aura have been hanging out with Tong Tae and his family also. Mae Boon and Aura get along with everyone and never have any problems fitting in with any group.

Tong Tae is getting braver and more inquisitive every day. Of course this always means more stress for mom and aunties as he boldly wanders away from them on a regular basis. One of his favorite activities is to escape from his shelter when mom, Tong Daeng, and auntie Mae Boon Ma are secured inside. He runs around in excitement, celebrating his freedom, until he becomes afraid and realizes he has forgotten how to get back inside! This is when he yells out in distress, causing his family to think he is in trouble, which causes them to vocalize their distress in turn, quite loudly! All of the mahouts come running, just in time to see a saggy little grey bottom squeezing itself between the fence posts, back to the safety of his family. Only to try to repeat the event half an hour later! Tong Tae is never at a loss for nurturing and companionship with such a variety of family members to choose from for comfort or a playmate.

Freedom, Fun, and Family for Faa Sai!

Our beloved Faa Sai is fast approaching her one-year anniversary of freedom from an exploitative existence, and enjoying her new life at Elephant Nature Park. Faa Sai has finally fattened up, and has settled in to her position as big sis to Tong Jan and her happiness and contentment at being part of a stable family is evident. She has relaxed immensely. She spends her days nestled in the bosom of her nurturing family group, enjoying the comfort and companionship of her caring aunties, Thai, Mae Elu, and Tong Jan's mom Mae Bua Tong. Dok Ngern and Aura also spend a fair amount of time with the family as well.

Faa Sai has had the same mahout for some time now. His name is Ay Cee. He is very kind, gentle, and patient. He relates to her very well. Over the past few months Faa Sai has started the positive reinforcement training sessions, like the other young residents of the Park. We want her to learn that training and cooperation doesn't have to mean pain and suffering. She actually seems to be enjoying her training sessions and is responding quite well to them. Until very recently her mahout didn't attempt to ride her, as she became agitated. But now she allows him to sit on her neck. This is not something that will have to be done all of the time, but the fact that she allows him to do this shows how much she has relaxed and that she trusts him. Also, now that she has gotten more cooperative and trusting, Faa Sai has started to receive medical treatment for her eye problems, which we hope with time we can remedy.

What is most important is that Faa Sai can enjoy her life at Elephant Nature Park just being an elephant in as natural of an environment as we can offer, but at the same time, it is necessary for her to be able to settle down, cooperate and comply to basic commands when it is necessary so we can give her medical attention in a safe manner without a lot of stress when it is needed, and we are working towards just that.

One Year of A Taste of Heaven
by Kelli Mlinarik Marko

It's been over one year since our cookbook, A Taste of Heaven: Recipes from Elephant Nature Park, finally went to print. Of course, it's been several years since the project was first birthed in the bamboo kitchen of the Park.

In 2004, my world expanded as I spent a month in Thailand. The whole darn country opened my heart, but the Park, oh the Park. I was amazed that such a place even existed. Lek's love and work, on behalf of the elephants and the planet, amazed me. Likewise, her cooking humbled me. My dear friend Layne and I lived in culinary ecstasy meal after meal, as most newcomers do. On the fourth evening, I asked Lek if I could help cook and learn the recipes. She said, "Oh no, please relax." On the fifth night, I asked her if I could learn the recipes to cook them at home and make money for the Park. She said, "Come on in!"

And so I started to cook and write and kept eating. I was in heaven. We used those recipes to host dinner parties back in the US. We were amateurs then and didn't charge enough and about died from the effort, but we were learning and people were responding to the heart of what we were doing. In 2005 I went back for more elephants and more recipes and with the knowing that what we needed was a cookbook.

My husband says that this is the kind of project you would never start if you knew the amount of work it would be. He's right. So, as I like to say, I am happy that I had no idea. I had to prepare each recipe multiple times to sort out the ingredient sizes and get more and more clarity about the processes and how to explain them to cooks of all skill levels and backgrounds. I had to find volunteers to design and lay out the book, practice recipes and edit my writing. My husband did all the legwork to learn how to self-publish something to make the maximum profit for the Park.

It was a lot of work.

The cookbook has been for sale online since August of 2007 and for sale at the Park since that September. It's been an amazing first year. We've sold well over 1,000 books at the Park and more than 500 from online and local sales in the US. The Serengeti Foundation is matching these latter sales at 50% bringing our total sales to over $20,000 US. (I want to note that Bert of Serengeti has also collected and transferred all the money to Lek in addition to matching a portion – thanks Bert!)

It was my goal to create a book that not only accurately shared the kitchen's amazing recipes, but also showed the heart of the Park. Through stories, facts and photos, I hoped to give visitors a travel memoir to take home with them. I did not expect the mass appeal the book would have with folks who have never even been to Thailand or the Park. Many animal lovers, cooks, and travelers are attracted to it immediately. The beauty of a book is that it can just keep selling and so we hope that this year's busy tourist season results in the same sales and the book provides an ongoing healthy annual income for the elephants.

I also had hoped to inspire people to use the recipes as a means to share their experiences with the elephants and I have been overwhelmed by the response. My very own neighbors, Harry Collins and Ginny West, hosted 40 people for a Thai food dinner using the cookbook this summer. They shopped and chopped and prepared a beautiful meal on a balmy night to raise money and awareness for the Park. All their proceeds – over $1,000 – went to Elephant Nature Foundation USA to buy medical supplies for the elephants. Harry and Ginny have never even been to Thailand, they just fell in love with the Park through the book.

Meanwhile, volunteer Cat Delahunty of Australia has hosted five dinner parties so far with friends and family. Her parties have been smaller with up to eight people per event and very focused on educating her guests. She has also raised $1,000 US through her efforts.

Ben Lear, a student in New Zealand, is working with his school to create a "mufti day" – an all-day event to raise funds for the Park. In addition to other activities, he's taking orders for the cookbook as we speak! His family has permission to reprint the book for sales in New Zealand to benefit the Park.

I am pleased that A Taste of Heaven has been a catalyst to create and sustain the ongoing community amongst Park volunteers and fans. Lek's presence and Thai culture teach us about inclusiveness and community. So raising funds through gathering people together to learn and eat is a beautiful extension of this. Sharing a meal is a very Thai venue for expressing and extending the love we all feel from and about the Park.

If you too are hosting dinner parties or using the recipes to raise funds, please contact me via the Park website. If you haven't yet seen the cookbook, please check it out at lulu.com. And please keep the book in mind for gift-giving occasions – it's a great way to support the Park and spread the word. Thank you to everyone who has helped make this project an ongoing success for Lek and the elephants.

Copyright © 2008 Elephant Nature Foundation. All rights reserved.