Vets Save Mother Elephant’s Life By Jumping Up And Down To Restart Her Heart In Front Of Her Worried Calf

During a recent torrential monsoon rain in Nakhon Nayok, central Thailand, a 10-Year-Old elephant and her baby calf, aged one, allegedly slipped into a concrete drain. The storm had made the grass somewhat wet and muddy, causing the creatures to fall into the 7ft deep hole.   

Sadly, the mother elephant hit her head and was knocked out cold, putting her life at risk.

But thankfully, incredible footage shows the enormous three-hour operation effort to pull out the elephants to safety and save the mother. Park rangers reportedly feared the mother would cry for help from a 30-elephant herd close by if they forced their way to pull the baby and, as a result, called the vets. 

First, the team set a temporary barrier to prevent the protective and potentially violent herd from approaching.

And while the mother was passed out in the hole, the baby elephant, trapped the night before, suckled milk which gave vets some relief. A crane was eventually used to pull the creatures out of the muddy drain before the vets continued their rescue mission. As the mother elephant touched the safe ground, three vets jumped on her to revive her as the impact of falling could have hurt her. 

Fortunately, the mother elephant woke up. 

“It was impossible to get near the baby while the mother was nearby, so we gave her three doses of tranquilizers, but she moved towards her baby before passing out and hit her head,” Lead National Park Vet Dr. Chananya Kanchanasarak said and added the mother gained consciousness after being stimulated. After the rescue, the park rangers and vets left the scene to permit the jumbos to reunite and be joined by the huge herd. 

Excited rangers and vets were spotted at a distance as the mother and her baby disappeared into the forest.

“Despite the obstacles, the mother did not leave her baby’s side. This experience touched our hearts and will be one of the most memorable rescues we’ve done. The vet said that both ‘mother and baby are safe,’ and she thanked people for the ‘hard work of all parties involved in the rescue,” Dr. Chananya stated. However, there are about 4000 elephants in Thailand. Half live in captivity, and the rest can be found in wildlife parks.