Our new baby boy elephant enjoyed his first ever dip in the pool today!
The keepers have been very hands-off with the new baby and left it up to first time mum Num-Oi to allow her calf to have a paddle in the shallow pool. When mum waded in, her little calf was right at her heels. And like most babies, he seemed to love having a good splash.
Keeper Lucas gave Num-Oi some fruit snacks while the calf waded around her feet and underneath her, looking quite confident as he experienced the pool for the first time. He even lay right down in the water at one point, briefly submerging himself.
Keeper Lucas giving mum some fruity snacks
We’ve all been amazed at how devoted a mum Num-Oi has been. The birth was quite difficult for her as he was a very big baby weighing in at 131kg! As soon as she gave birth she was tenderly nurturing her new born and assisting him in his first efforts to stand despite her own discomfort. The rest of the herd have also bonded really well with it’s newest addition with Mali in particular wanting to take care of her new half brother.
Check out this video of Num-Oi giving birth and the baby’s first swim!
Since the calf is making such good progress, there are now two viewing periods each day for visitors to see him: 11:00-12:30 and 2:00-3:00. Come and check him out while he’s still tiny (for an elephant)
I have a suggestion for the baby’s name from a colleague in Thailand: Loog-Yang (this is a plant that can fly by itself because it has 2 wings). we were looking for a name that was something like ‘fireweed’ in Alaska. A plant that can grow where the land has just been destroyed by fire. My friend Supanee told me that most all plants in Thailand are like that especially the Loog-Yang. Thanks, Tatty
An elephant that can fly… Cool!
I’ll pass it on to the Elephant team. Great suggestion!
Mali has been the best big sister! She makes sure the little guy doesn’t stray too far from mum
This little elephant loves to dig! Maybe they can call him Phu khud which is Thai for digger :)
Hi Rick, I am new to your site and really love it! I am so grateful that you and the others at your zoo take such good care of your elephants and the other animals that I have seen. Not all zoos care enough to ensure that their beautiful animals get to experience a life close to what they would have in the wild and or abuse them terribly! I am concerned over one thing that I see in the videos and that is the bull hooks some of the people are carrying…Why do you allow bullhooks to be used? In one of the videos I saw a baby elephant shrug back a bit when he saw the person holding the bullhook pull it forward which made me very uneasy! Please set my mind and heart at rest! Thank you again! Holly
Hi Holly,
Thanks for the question and for sharing your concerns. The Elephant Keepers use the ankus as an extension of their arm, to provide training cues to the elephants, which are a highly tactile species. They are not sharp and are never used to punish or frighten the elephants: they are purely a training tool. When you visit, you may notice how the elephants approach the Keepers for attention, which would not happen if they were afraid. The Keepers are devoted to the welfare of the elephants and work long and hard to ensure that they are getting the best of care. In the video of Num-Oi giving birth, you can see how willing she is for the Keepers to come close to her and the baby, which shows a high level of trust.
Hope that helps to set your heart and mind at rest.
My daughters Nina and Tilly think that the baby Elephant should be called Norbu. It’s a Tibetan name that means precious jewel and it’s the name we called my daughter when I was pregnant before she was born!
