It is unfortunate news that a baby elephant, which was under the care of Bomman and Bellie, the main couple from the Academy Award-winning documentary Elephant Whisperers, passed away in the early hours of Friday. The baby elephant was kept at Theppakadu Elephant Camp in Mudumalai Tiger Reserve for nearly two weeks. Forest officials took the baby elephant to the camp after discovering that it had been separated from its mother and herd.
According to orders from the state forest department, Bellan rescued the baby elephant from a well in Dharmapuri district, Tamil Nadu, earlier this month. Since 16 March, the baby elephant had been given a liquid diet and was being monitored by medical staff and Bomman and Bellie. The baby elephant was being fed lactogen, but it was discovered that baby elephants do not secrete sufficient enzymes to digest lactogen, and such enzymes are scarce in babies that are not being fed by their mothers. Officials believe that lactogen began to accumulate in the baby’s system and cause diarrhoea, but the baby remained playful and active, and no visible symptoms of lactogen accumulation were noticed.
When veterinary doctors observed diarrhoea on Thursday, they began administering glucose mixed with medications, but the baby elephant died around 1 a.m. on Friday without responding to treatment. Although it is believed that allergies caused the diarrhoea and death, a post-mortem examination is being conducted to determine the exact cause of death.
Bomman and Bellie became famous after a documentary film, Elephant Whisperers, was filmed at Mudumalai Tiger Reserve and Theppakadu Elephant Camp, portraying how they raised two abandoned baby elephants and captured the extraordinary bond between human caretakers and baby elephants.
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