WARNING---PICTURE OVERLOAD. I TOOK OVER 2000 PHOTOS IN INDIA, AND 1000 OF THEM WERE AT THE ELEPHANT SANCTUARY.
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| my family with my Bijli |
The elephant sanctuary at Wildlife SOS was the highlight of
our trip to India (for all of us). We
waited for over a year to finally meet all the elephants that we had been
reading about online. It did not
disappoint. When we arrived, we were
given a tour of the facility before we met some of the elephants on their
morning walk. The first two were Maya
and Phoolkali—two of the largest females in the Herd of Hope. The size of these majestic creatures is very intimidating. We were given bananas and
peanuts to feed them, but all of us were too nervous and so we just threw the
food into their mouths. Maya does not
like to use her trunk. You have to place the food in her mouth. After the first day though, our fears
subsided and a natural comfort developed and before you knew it, we were
rubbing their tongues. Yes, some enjoy a
good tongue rub.
The elephants’ routine always began with a 2-3 hour morning
walk. They get two walks a day during
the winter. It is good exercise for
them. The walks are my favorite because
you get the chance to really bond with the elephants. I love rubbing on their trunks, but my
favorite was rubbing their cheeks. Their
skin is soft yet rough with prickly, coarse hairs.
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| with Chanchal and Bijli |
There are 15 elephants in the herd when we
arrived – 10 females and 5 males. By the
time we left, WSOS rescued two more elephants (Mia and Sita). We weren’t sure if we would still be at WSOS
when the two new elephants arrived, but on our last day, we were there to
welcome them to their new home. What an
amazing experience to be there when they brought them home!! They both looked terribly thin, fragile, and
just horrible, but I know all of this will change soon. The five male elephants were in musth so our
interaction was limited. After the
morning walk, we would return to the sanctuary for our mid-morning tea. Oh my gosh!!!! We all became addicted India
tea. I actually had our friend Bheema
show us how to make it. I could drink
that every day.
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| Indian tea. We all waited anxiously for this daily treat. |
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| the red chair was the spot where we had our tea. Lunch was provided as shown above. Lance interacting and socializing with the mahouts |
After tea, we would prepare the elephants’ snacks. We spent a great deal of time chopping up
pumpkins, papaya, bananas, beets, carrots, melon etc. Susie is the oldest elephant in the
sanctuary. She is 65 years old and blind.
Her fruit had to be smushed into what we called “Suzy’s smoothie” since
she had no teeth. Brandon and Mia were
primarily responsible for Suzy’s snack.
The knives were very dull which made it difficult to cut/peel the
fruit. Lance had his military knife,
which he brought out and ended up giving to Bheema. Once all the fruits were cut and distributed
into tin pails, we began to feed the elephants.
Mia and Brandon liked feeding the younger elephants Peanut (6) and
Coconut. Elephants are very much like
people with their individual personalities and tastes. Peanut hated pineapple and would spit them
out. Coconut hated carrots. Almost all the elephants at the sanctuary are
elderly with the exception of the Nut Herd (Peanut, Coconut, Macadamia Nut,
Walnut). In fact, many are also
blind.
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| Suzy's Smoothie (apples, papaya, banana, melon) |
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| someone is getting a pineapple snack. |
Following their fruit snack, we would do various
duties. Lance oftentimes would follow
his good friend Moona (a mahout) and one of the veterinarian doctors. He would
feed the elephants an unlimited supply of bananas while they were getting treatment. He was able to get to interact with the male
elephants and see up close how the doctor treated their ailments. I came along with him when the doctor was
treating Raju. Raju is special. He is the most famous elephant in the
sanctuary. I got teary eyed standing
near him—to finally be able to meet the elephant who started it all for me—It
was an honor. Raju is incredibly smart.
I would feed him a half banana in his trunk. He would pretend he ate it
and would return his trunk for more, but then I would see that banana---it was
either hidden way deep in his trunk or behind it. He only pretended to eat it. I started giving him more than one at a time,
and he just left his trunk in front of my hands to keep putting in more
bananas. He would not retreat. I would put one in and his trunk would not
retreat. Two? Three? Four? Five? Six? Yes, finally with six half bananas in his
trunk he would bring them up to his mouth to eat. He is so clever and so sweet.
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| Chanchal getting medial treatment |
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| Chanchal getting treatment |
We were also able to bathe the elephants. What an amazing
experience! Imagine a car wash, but this
is an elephant wash. They would be
sprayed with water from a hose and we would just scrub, scrub, and scrub away.
Their ears are very heavy, and I accidentally was hit by it. You cannot help but get soaking wet. It was amazing.
I bonded with all of the elephants, but my favorite was
Bijli. I didn’t come to WSOS with a
favorite, but somehow, someway, my girl Bijli captured my heart. She would flap her ears and purr like a giant
cat. The mahout said she was doing that for me and that she was happy. Did you
know elephants purr? She would stop in
the middle of her walk and allow me to rub her trunk and her cheek. She just
stood their basking in the love I had to give.
Bijli and I bonded, and from that moment on, I didn’t want to leave her
side. I wanted to be with her every
moment. When we did leave, I felt
incredibly sad and heartbroken. I simply
just cried.
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| my girl...my Bijli |
Mia loved Peanut probably because she is still a baby, and
Brandon liked Coconut. Lance favored a
male named Bhola because he spent a great deal of time giving him treats while
the doctor provided veterinarian care.
He said that Bhola would recognize him as he walked by his enclosure and
would follow him expecting more bananas.
All of the elephants had such personality.
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| Mia is getting played with.... |
I know the concerns from western veterinarian science would
be that it is not safe to allow people so close to these animals….these wild
animals, but I never felt unsafe. I
always followed and listened to the mahouts instructions. I cannot really do the program justice with
my words because honestly, there are no words to describe this experience. I guess for me, it would be “magical”. I would say the five days spent at WSOS
elephant sanctuary were just magical.
The elephant sanctuary also had many dogs, and Mia just loved playing with them. They were so loving and affectionate. At times, Mia paid more attention to the dogs than she did the elephants.
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| Playing in a hole and painting while at the center. |
I didn’t want to leave, and I felt horribly sad.
Prior
to our visit, we were just monthly donors, but when we left at the conclusion
of our volunteer week, we became personally and emotionally attached to
WSOS. I knew we would get attached to the animals, but what I did not
expect was the bond we established with WSOS staff. No word can express
my gratitude to all of the staff. They
answered all of our questions. They explained the history of each of the elephants
and taught us many things. We also felt completely safe and taken care of
under their guidance. They were also incredibly attentive to our kids.
They were so, so very good to us. They are so hardworking, kind,
humble, good people. Bheema was the volunteer coordinator, and he
absolutely adored Mia. He gave Dylan a
ride on his motorcycle. Naresh, the
elephant manager, was absolutely amazing.
I loved his kindness. They were
both so easy to talk to, and I loved how genuine they are. I felt so at ease and natural – no false or
complicated pretenses.
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| Naresh |
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| with one of the veterinarians, Traci (fellow volunteer), Moona, and Naresh |
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| Bheema adored Mia and treated her like a princess. |
Lance
bonded with a mahout named Moona. Moona
spoke limited English but somehow, the friendship between him and Lance needed
no words. Moona took such good care of
Lance, and Lance spent hours with him – assisting him and doctors in the medical
treatment of the elephants. What I
thought was so incredibly sweet was-----I turned around to look at Lance and
Moona and the next thing I knew, Lance took off his watch (the one I gave him
for his birthday a few years ago) and gave it to Moona. Moona looked completely shocked as if he was
about to cry---it was the most sweetest thing I had ever seen my husband
do. Now, please do not go thinking that
Moona was asking for things from Lance.
He was not. These people are
incredibly humble and good, good, good people.
In fact, Moona came up to Lance later and told him that he didn’t want
him to feel bad and that he would give the watch back, but Lance insisted he
wanted Moona to keep it.
When
it was time to say goodbye, I knew it would be hard for Lance and Moona. Moona just stood there looking at our car
drive away. It was just like a sad, a
very sad movie. I knew it was hard for
Lance too. I could see it on his
face. He tries to hide his emotions, but
a subtle change in his facial expression tells me everything. These two men became brothers in a few
days.
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| Lance and Moona |
We ate vegetarian the entire time
we were there. It was so delicious, but it
was also a bit spicy so I struggled trying to find things Brandon and Mia could
eat. I guess they survived on peanut
butter and jelly sandwiches and ramen noodles for a week. When you are in the volunteer program, the
vegetarian meals are provided. However,
on our very last day, Moona decided to cook us a chicken. I’m not sure which
village he got the chicken from, but he wanted to do something special for
Lance. I could see on his face how much
he loved Lance and vice versa.
I gave Naresh a hug goodbye and tears fell
from my eyes too.
We
spent Thanksgiving in India so my children did not have the traditional feast
with Turkey, gravy, mash potatoes and all the fixings. What I found touching was our fellow
volunteers, Bheema and Naresh joined us to celebrate this American holiday with
Domino’s pizza. The pizza did not quite
taste like American pizza, but it sufficed.
We went around the table as it is a tradition in our household and
expressed our gratitude for various things.
It was very simple yet incredibly beautiful.
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| Thanskgiving time with new friends |
We feel personally connected to WSOS. I know I could never recreate this moment,
because if we were to return to India, it would be with different volunteers,
but the experience is something we shall NEVER forget. We made both elephant and human friends. It was very sad, because farewells were imminent, but I feel grateful I was able to live it.
The days at Wildlife SOS Elephant Center were magical.
Next Stop: Airtel Delhi Half Marathon
