Report to the Born Free Foundation (1/99)

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Summary Report to the Born Free Foundation on the Makhna Elephant of Mudumalai

To whom it may concern:

Here follows a brief summary of my observations and recommendations regarding the makhna (tuskless male elephant) currently held captive at Mudumalai Elephant Camp, Tamil Nadu, India.

Observations: I was able to watch the makhna, for periods of up to several hours per day, on 26th, 27th, 28th, 29th and 31st January 1999. He had been in a log kraal measuring approximately 16ft x 16ft since July last year. I took video and stills when possible.

General condition: the makhna is underweight and still recovering from the horrific chain injuries resulting from the capture and forced march of the elephant last July. His legs are still swollen and infected, though much better than in the video shot last autumn. The state of the injuries was described in detail by Dr. James Mahoney, a veterinary surgeon of the New York University Medical Center, during his treatment between 8^th - 20^th December 1998; those who were present at that time consider that the condition of the chain injuries and abscesses have deteriorated in the intervening weeks. His skin is dry and cracking in places, especially around the toenails; the soles of his feet are cracking and detaching in places from the heel. His discomfort is evident by his inability to stand evenly on all four limbs; the right hind leg is too painful to carry much weight, but the left hind leg tires after taking all the weight for a time. He is evidently unable to lie down in the confines of the kraal, which has an uneven, log substrate, and so he constantly shifts his weight from one side to the other.

Behavior: the most disturbing aspect of the makhna's behavior was his fear response to his mahouts and their assistants. Whenever he heard a command, or was tapped lightly with a stick, or even just heard the chink of a chain link, he responded with what appeared to be terror. This was evident from his immediate tension, tail and ears often held out, involuntary release of urine and distress calls. During the cleaning out of the kraal by young boys, I repeatedly saw this response to their commands to move over; they were not being particularly harsh, but he clearly associated their commands and relatively light taps with the stick with the kind of beating witnessed by Dr. Mahoney in December. The memory of the intense pain of being beaten repeatedly on swollen, infected and inflamed limbs is, in my opinion, the reason for his fear-response. During my visit, training was recommenced on the 27th , and while I was not permitted to watch, the mahouts' shouted commands and the elephant's loud distress calls were clearly audible from the elephant feeding area.

The consequences of this fear are significant in relation to the elephant's ability to recover from his injuries and illness. His immune system is likely being suppressed by the near constant stress he is living under, exacerbated by the poor diet. The hind leg wounds are being repeatedly drenched with urine, which will encourage further infection. He is not being given antibiotics to help control the systemic infection.

Forestry Department Plans: the Wildlife Warden at Mudumalai was not prepared to discuss the case with me; after a week of not being available, he told me he considered there was no problem other than too much outside interference, and declined the offer of BFF assistance. The vet in charge of the makhna's care is the well-known retired forestry department vet, Dr. Krishnamurthy. He lives in Madras and is only in attendance at Mudumalai for a few days per month, but he did agree to meet me. On 1st February, during a two-hour meeting in Madras, Dr. Krishnamurthy said that the makhna would be let out of the kraal in mid-late February, with a drag chain attached to his left hind leg. I pointed out that the leg is still infected, and that the elephant is terrified of the sound of chinking chains. (It brought to mind the cruelty involved in tying fire-crackers to the tail of a cat - the more the animal tries to get away, the more the frightening stimulus intensifies).

I discussed the role of IPAN (the animal refuge, whose staff had been permitted to feed and treat the makhna for four months, but who were inexplicably banned from doing so on Christmas Day). Dr. Krishnamurthy agreed that Nigel Otter, who has a strong bond with the elephant, should be allowed to help organize extra fodder, at the Forestry Department's expense. But in subsequent telephone calls and meetings with Dr. Michael

Fox of IPAN, I learned that this has not been permitted and that the elephant is now chained by one front and rear leg to two trees, giving less freedom of movement than when he was in the kraal.

If he survives this treatment, the long-term future for this elephant is uncertain. I hope that there may be an opportunity to discuss this with the authorities to try and agree a course of action that is in the best interests of animal welfare. One suggestion that I might make at this stage is that rather than being used as a working elephant, this unique elephant could be used in taste aversion trials to seek an humane answer to the problem of crop-raiding. This would require the construction of an enclosure away from the stresses of the elephant camp, and could only begin when the makhna has fully recovered. Dr. Krishnamurthy was interested, and asked me to develop a proposal with Dr. Sukumar.

Recommendations: In the meantime, my urgent recommendations are:

1. The training (i.e. beating) and chaining of this elephant MUST stop immediately.
2. The people involved with the training, whose presence causes such fear, should be replaced - ideally by IPAN staff who already know the elephant.
3. He should be moved to a large enclosure, where he can move around at will without the need for chains (local supporters have offered to donate the funds required).
4. His diet should be supplemented with nourishing foods to allow his strength to recover.
5. Plans to use this elephant as a working elephant should be cancelled. An alternative and more constructive proposal for his future is in preparation by the Born Free Foundation.
6. There is a groundswell of public concern for the makhna, which has resulted in articles in the Indian press and national television coverage. It is vital for the welfare of the elephant and the reputation of the forestry department that swift action is taken along these lines.

Ian Redmond BSc CBiol MIBiol
Wildlife Consultant
P.O. Box 308,
Bristol BS99 7LQ, UK
Telephone: 0117 924 6489
Fax: 0117 975 4568
Email: ele@globalnet.co.uk

February 1999