Elephant hurt by land mine ready fo

[moe@xxxxxxxxxxxxx]

Subject: Elephant hurt by land mine ready for amputation 

Elephant hurt by land mine ready for amputation 
The Atlanta Constitution; Atlanta, Ga; Aug 25, 1999; Sakchai Lalit; 

Sub Title:  [Metro Edition] 
Start Page:  A; 12 
Dateline:  Lampang, Thailand 
Abstract:
Land-mine victims rarely receive much attention in Thailand, but Motola the
elephant has received an outpouring of support since her crippling accident
last week.

Motola's left front leg was shredded when she stepped on a land mine while
foraging for food during a break from her work at a logging camp near the
Thai-Myanmar border --- the site of decades of conflict between rebels and
Myanmar's government.

Full Text: 
(Copyright, The Atlanta Journal and Constitution - 1999) 

Land-mine victims rarely receive much attention in Thailand, but Motola the
elephant has received an outpouring of support since her crippling accident
last week.

Veterinarians prepared Tuesday to amputate the 38-year-old elephant's
shattered limb, moving a crane into place to support her huge bulk during
and after surgery at an elephant hospital.

Motola's left front leg was shredded when she stepped on a land mine while
foraging for food during a break from her work at a logging camp near the
Thai-Myanmar border --- the site of decades of conflict between rebels and
Myanmar's government.

The wound became badly infected during her hobbling, three-day trek to the
Hang Chat Elephant Hospital in Lampang province, 317 miles north of Bangkok.
Weeping when she arrived, Motola has been receiving jumbo doses of
painkillers.

Surgery was scheduled for today, when veterinarians plan to remove the
destroyed parts of her leg, possibly as high as the knee.

Veterinarian Preecha Paungkam told the ITV television network that Motola
had received about four gallons of saline solution in preparation for
surgery and her condition was improving.

A crane with a long cable and harness system will be used to suspend Motola
above the ground to prevent her from putting her weight on the leg and make
it easier to treat for infection.

Vets hope to fit Motola with an artificial leg.

Soraida Salvala, of the Friends of the Asian Elephants Foundation, said
nearly $27,000 had been raised to pay for the operation, although the cost
of Motola's care could be higher. Such support for a land-mine victim is
remarkable in Thailand, where thousands of amputees have taken refuge from
wars in Myanmar, also known as Burma, and Cambodia.

Thailand is home to about 2,000 wild elephants, while 2,100 more have been
domesticated for work in tourism or the timber industry.

Credit: Associated Press