Coimbatore, Nov. 13
Giving the ailing 25-year-old tusker a 50 per cent chance of survival, Forest Department personnel on Monday treated the elephant that was suffering from an abscess on its left foreleg.
The personnel of Coimbatore Forest Division along with a team of three veterinarians managed to complete the treatment swiftly in three hours even as the terrain was challenging.
The elephant was found roaming in the villages near Anaikatti, with the wound for the past few days and the wound had debilitated the animal. The animal was identified by elephant trackers near Kondanur, at Veerapandi Panchayat, on the outskirts of the city.
A team was formed to sedate the animal and treat it for its wound. Kumki Pari was sent from the Chadivayal elephant camp. However, treatment could not be started on Sunday. An additional Kumki, Sujay, was also sent to the spot from the Chadivayal camp on Monday. Ironically, throughout the treatment, an earth mover replaced both the Kumkis and managed to control the movement of the tusker making the presence of the Kumkis redundant.
The tusker that was hiding inside thick vegetation on a dry stream bed was guided out by elephant trackers using crackers and was darted with a standing sedation at 1.25 p.m. Since the initial tranquiliser failed to keep the animal within supportive terrain, another tranquiliser of the same standing sedation was administered around 2.12 p.m.
The animal moved slowly towards another bushy region on the stream and wasting no time, the team of veterinarians comprising Forest veterinarians Dr. N.S. Manohar and Dr. K. Ashokan started the operation by approaching the animal. Local veterinarian of Anakatti Dr. M. Jaya Bharathi also assisted the doctors.
The animal was administered antibiotics and the football-size abscess was cut open using a knife that was attached to a stick. Forest Range Officer of Periyanaickenpalayam Range S. Palaniraja, Dr. Manoharan and Assistant Conservator of Forests M. Nazir, took turns to apply anti-inflammatory and antibiotics once the puss from the abscess gushed out.
The medicine was applied to the animal by dipping cotton in the medicine and tying it to the end of a long stick. A spray can was also used to spray medicine on the wound. This helped the team approach the wound from a safe distance. The animal was given space to move towards the forest and water was sprayed on its body to fight dehydration. The animal was also given fodder and water mixed with jaggery and salt.
Senior officials from the department said that two teams from Periyanaickenpalayam Range and adjoining Coimbatore Range would be posted to monitor the movements of the animal.
“This treatment would give the animal a 50 per cent chance of survival. We will have to intervene again if its condition gets worse,” said District Forest Officer N. Satheesh.
Conservator of Coimbatore Forest Division S. Ramasubramaniam and leading expert on elephant biology Ajay Desai were also present during the operation.