NEWS - Surgery Gives Motala the Tha

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Subject: NEWS - Surgery Gives Motala the Thai Elephant a Chance to Walk Again

Surgery Gives Motala the Thai Elephant a Chance to Walk Again
August 28, 1999 
Web posted at: 10:44 AM EDT (1444 GMT) 


LAMPANG, Thailand (AP) -- When Motala hobbled into hospital ten days ago
after treading on a land mine, people across Thailand were shocked by
what they saw: an elephant reduced to tears by pain. 

Vets at the pachyderm clinic had never seen wounds so bad and wondered
if she would pull through. But with the help of over $100,000 donated by
Thais who have watched Motala's plight on television, there is hope the
elephant can survive and maybe walk again. 

A team of five surgeons, assisted by 12 nurses, a hydraulic crane, 20
Thai soldiers and a firetruck, on Saturday amputated Motola's front left
foot. 

Using enough anesthetic to floor 70 humans, they were able to cut away
dead flesh that vets hope can be replaced with a prosthetic -- the first
such operation in Thailand. 

"I can't tell you right now about the condition of the elephant but we
think the surgery was successful," said Therdchai Cheewaket, a top Thai
bone surgeon after the three-hour operation. 

Beforehand, the medical team rated Motala's chances of survival at 50
percent. 

The elephant had trodden on a land mine during a break from work in the
forests of neighboring Myanmar, also known as Burma, which is strewn
with explosive booby traps planted by ethnic rebels and government
troops. 

Her wounds were the worst ever seen at the Lampang hospital, which
treats elephants for everything from snake bites to broken limbs. 

Motala had to trek for three days through the jungle to make it back to
Thailand, before being trucked to the hospital for treatment. Television
cameras captured tears streaking down her gray face before heavy doses
of painkillers took effect. 

Her story struck a chord in Thailand. Numbers of elephants -- the
national animal -- have dwindled sharply over the past three decades
during the Southeast Asian country's rapid development. 

>From over 11,000 domesticated elephants in 1965, there are now believed
to be as few as 2,500 and another 2,000 in the wild. They are often now
used by villagers to beg in big cities, particularly Bangkok. 

Rapid deforestation has robbed wild elephants of their natural habitat,
and the mechanization of country life has made them increasingly
redundant as beasts of burden -- leaving them open to abuse by human
masters. 

Blood tests revealed that 38-year old Motala was fed amphetamines to
make her work faster. Her 21-year old handler admitted he had given his
charge the narcotic during a logging job in June. 

The practice is common in Thailand, particularly towards the end of the
dry season, when the pressure is on to haul timber faster from forests
before monsoon rains set in. 

Soraida Salwala, founder of the Friends of the Asian Elephant
organization, said the elephant was still struggling to adjust to modern
life in Thailand. 

"There are people who take old logging elephants and ride them around
the streets to make money. They abuse the elephants and deceive people
into thinking they are actually helping them," she said. 

As Motala's tale has unfolded, national interest has grown. Millions of
Thais have tuned in for regular updates broadcast on national
television. 

Legions of well-wishers have also visited the hospital, including about
100 villagers before the operation Saturday. 

"I came here with my family to give my support to the medical team in
saving the elephant's life. We really pity her," said one visitor,
Suphakat Molthisok, 35, an office worker. 

Motala's owner, Thomwang Varunvirya said he had bought her for 170,000
baht (dlrs 4,470) four years ago. 

He usually used her to take tourists for rides in the northern mountains
of Thailand, but had been hired by a Thai logging firm working in
Myanmar when the accident happened. 

"I'm very happy she got the surgery. I could feel her pain," said
Thomwang. "I only hope she wakes up."