The Elephant Sanctuary is proud to announce our involvement in another grass roots program aimed at improving the health and welfare of captive elephants.

The program is titled the Captive Elephant Health Care Program and is conducted by EcoSystems-India. The principal investigators are Dr. Kushal Konwar Sharma, Dr. Apurba Chakravorty and Dr. Parag Jyoti Deka. Our involvement in the program is overseen by our liaison in India, A. Christy Williams.

Northeast India in general and Assam in particular has a long history and tradition of keeping elephants in domestic condition. For several decades these elephants were mostly engaged in the logging operations. Being the bread earners, these animals usually enjoyed good care from their owners. When the over exploitation of the forest resources reached a flash point, the apex court of India had to intervene by clamping a ban on all tree-falling activities.

This program offers general health evaluation, fecal screening, other required hematological examination and minor surgical procedures. Additionally, elephants are vaccinated against endemic bacterial and viral diseases.

Below are photos which show how this initiative is improving the lives of elephants.

Many elephants benefit from this program	An ear infection is treated
Dr. Sharma examines a patient	While two babies play
An injection is given	Providing medicine
Dr. Sharma greets two patients	Treating a wound
A young male is brought in for treatment

If you are interested in assisting with the funding of this on-going elephant welfare project please send your contribution to:

The Elephant Sanctuary
P.O. Box 393, Hohenwald
TN 38462

Please make your check payable to The Elephant Sanctuary/Assam Program.

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