Elephants, who are majestic, gentle giants, are extremely mesmerising to watch, which is apparent at the Pinnawala Elephant Orphanage where large crowds gather by the Ma Oya to watch these mammoth creatures play in the water. Elephant bathing, one of the main activities or programmes at the Pinnawala Elephant Orphanage, takes place daily during 10 a.m. to 12 p.m. and 2 p.m. to 4 p.m.
Other programmes at the Pinnawala Elephant Orphanage include fruit feeding and walking with an elephant. While these activities allow us to get close to these majestic elephants, the staff of Pinnawala Elephant Orphanage believe the elephants also enjoy them.
During a recent visit, The Daily Morning Brunch had the opportunity of exploring the Pinnawala Elephant Orphanage, learning more about it, and meeting the twin calves, Sajjana and Dissa.
Pinnawala Elephant Orphanage
There are currently 69 elephants at the Pinnawala Elephant Orphanage. These include eight who are on court order, and until the case is over, the elephants are taken care of by the Zoological Department. These elephants occupy the 25 acres that make up the Pinnawala Elephant Orphanage.
Two key objectives of the Pinnawala Elephant Orphanage are reproduction and conservation. So far, 70 calves have been born at the elephant orphanage naturally. They also focus on research and studies at the Pinnawala Elephant Orphanage.
University students, both local and foreign, come to conduct studies and research on elephants at the premises. There are also educational programmes for schoolchildren.
According to Pinnawala Elephant Orphanage Deputy Director Mihiran Madawala, locals and foreigners can also work at the Pinnawala Elephant Orphanage as volunteers, whether it’s for a day or two, or a couple of months. “We have many foreign volunteers like this. This is essentially like a course, as they are able to be with the elephants with our trained staff. And we train them on taking care of elephants, from cleaning stalls, to feeding and bathing them, medical treatment and containing an elephant,” Madawala said.
He added that people who stay for a few weeks can learn a lot about elephants. “We also have a lot of researchers, from Sri Lanka and abroad. Research students studying subjects related to elephants can learn a lot here,” he said, adding that this applies to students of zoology, agriculture, animal feed, veterinary, tourism, and engineering, especially those coming up with solutions for the human-elephant conflict.
Sajjana and Dissa
While all of Pinnawala’s elephants are quick to win over hearts, twin calves Sajjana and Dissa are definitely stealing the show. Aged two, the boys were the first twin calves born in a zoological garden and also the first set of twins among domesticated elephants.
Being twins comes with its own challenges, however, as they are not as physically strong as others their age. The Pinnawala Elephant Orphanage has four other calves, but Sajjana and Dissa are kept separate from them, and spend time with their mother. They are taken to the river before the other elephants, accompanied by their mother and another female elephant.
Speaking about the challenges they faced in caring for the twins, Ratnayake shared that they are kept away from the other elephants as they may bump into each other and fall and hurt themselves.
“Even though they are two years old, we haven’t socialised the twins with other elephants yet, but discussions have been going on about mixing them with the main group soon. Even this is a big risk and it’s a huge responsibility. You cannot rewind or go back when dealing with their lives, and we don’t know how the others will react. So discussions have focused on introducing them in a gradual process,” he shared.
Factors like the weather and the number of visitors must also be taken into consideration here.
“It’s difficult to predict how the others will embrace them, especially since they have been away for two years. One thing often seen is that when a new elephant is introduced to the herd, the others surround it. When one wants to see the baby, the other does too. Then they get very close to the baby and since they are big creatures, the calf gets bumped around and ends up having to move around a lot,” Ratnayake explained.
However, as for their health, Sajjana and Dissa are in good health and are on a normal diet of mother’s milk, leaves, and fruits.
Programmes and activities
According to Pinnawala Elephant Orphanage Chief Curator (Animal) Sanjaya K. Ratnayake, there are various activities and programmes daily from 8.30 a.m. to 5.30 p.m. The programmes are decided so that no harm or inconvenience is caused to the elephants. The programmes also depend on the elephant’s health on that particular day.
“During the rainy season, there are times when we can’t take the elephants to the river. On such occasions, we suspend activities like taking elephants to the river and allowing visitors to bathe them, but their drinking and bathing needs are fulfilled within the orphanage premises,” Ratnayake said.
He explained that not all elephants are part of activities that put them in close contact with humans. Elephants that are friendly towards people and obey their mahout are picked. “So far, we have never had an issue when carrying out these programmes, and in fact, the elephants seem to like it because their behaviour does not indicate discomfort of any kind,” Ratnayake shared.
While bathing, he explained that elephants like to be in water, especially for cooling. Elephants also like physical contact. Ratnayake added that with activities like Walk with an Elephant, the elephant gets exercise as well.
“Elephant behaviour changes over time, so we can’t tell what our programmes will be like in future. The elephants and the programmes may see certain changes, and we may even have to discontinue certain programmes. This depends on their behaviour,” he shared.
Care and safety
As Ratnayake emphasised, elephant safety is paramount and is prioritised at all times. During our visit, a film crew was busy capturing footage for a documentary. When asked how such requests are handled, Ratnayake shared that all visits and special requirements must be approved by the Director General of the Pinnawala Elephant Orphanage. Those making the request must specify exactly what they plan on doing, and the team at the Pinnawala Elephant Orphanage inform the Director General what can be allowed and what cannot. It is thereafter that the approval is given.
“We know how our elephants behave and we send visitors only to elephants we know can handle it. Even then, we first provide guidelines to people and inform them that we are there for their safety. And we tell them what each elephant is comfortable with, in terms of being approached or touched. If an elephant is in any way going to be in any harm, we don’t allow it,” he stressed.
The same care is taken for elephants taking part in processions. Three elephants at the Pinnawala Elephant Orphanage are available to walk processions, but the organisers of the procession must make a request, which is approved only if the Pinnawala Elephant Orphanage team is satisfied they meet certain standards and conditions. Information that should be provided must include the route that the procession will take, how the elephant will be transported to and from Pinnawala, the condition and safety of the vehicle, availability of medical teams, and the care and meals of the elephant.
Development plans
The Pinnawala Elephant Orphanage has plans for development, but these are implemented depending on the funds allocated to them. It was thus hard to say in certain terms what kind of development one could expect in the coming years, Madawala shared, adding that one of the key areas they are looking at is elephant shed modification.
In terms of changes being made in the elephant orphanage, Madawala shared that one of the main programmes they have now is the removal of chains as much as possible. “This is our main target, where we plan on removing the chains of all elephants,” he said.
“The main issue with chains that we have is with the bulls, since they are aggressive. When going to the river, we have to cross a main road and go down another, and because we can’t guarantee 100% safety, we do have to use a chain at times. They aren’t tied, and it's put over their neck in case of an emergency, as it’s the chain that is used to hold the elephant in place,” Madawala explained.
Most elephants don’t have chains, and it's mostly the aggressive males that need them. All cows walk to the river unchained. They are also turning to the usage of dull bullhooks, where there are no pointy ends that can hurt the elephant.
While these are gradually being rolled out, Madawala noted an increase in the number of visitors the Pinnawala Elephant Orphanage is seeing. “With the economic conditions of the country, there are not many locals who travel or visit, but compared to the past few years, especially with the Covid-19 pandemic, there is an increase. There is also an increase in foreign tourists. We haven’t reached 2018 numbers, but we are seeing more foreign tourists than the last three years,” he shared.
Photos Lalith Perera