Elephant found unconscious in Talavadi forest given treatment

A three-year-old female juvenile elephant that was found lying in the forest boundary near Balapadugai village in Talavadi Range of Sathyamangalam Tiger Reserve (STR) was treated by veterinarians and sent into the forest on Wednesday.

Forest officials found the elephant in the forest boundary during a patrol and alerted Devendra Kumar Meena, District Forest Officer, Hasanur Division and Deputy Field Director of STR. A veterinarian team from the Forest Veterinary Unit of STR found the animal to be dehydrated and weak due to intestinal parasites. After the team administered antibiotics and medicines, the elephant recovered. It was sent into the forest and officials continue to monitor its movement.

Forest officials said the elephant was moving slowly along the forest boundary and a team of forest staff is monitoring it round-the-clock. They said that more antibiotics would be administered to the elephant and the pachyderm would be monitored for a week. Based on its health condition, further action will be taken, they added.