Muthu Raja: Thai elephant’s recovery promising despite tumour diagnosis

The health of a 30-year-old male Thai elephant Sak Surin (also known as ‘Muthu Raja’) appears promising despite a recent diagnosis of five separate tumours.

The Thai Elephant Conservation Centre based in Lampang noted Sak Surin’s surprisingly resilient recovery.

After spending 22 years on non-native grounds in Sri Lanka, Sak Surin was returned home and admitted to the Centre’s Elephant Hospital for care on July 2.

The rehabilitation centre has since been running a series of health and behavioural assessments on the towering beast, finding overall encouraging signs of improvement.

Sak Surin’s dietary regime rotates mostly around veggie-friendly options such as fresh cuts of grass and succulent fruit, consuming between 120 and 200 kilograms daily.

Despite his ailments, Sak Surin has shown promising signs of adaptation. His sleep pattern remains consistent with 1-3 hours of sleep occurring twice each night.

Acclimatisation with his new human caregivers (or mahouts) seems to be progressing well, as Sak Surin increasingly allows them close proximity, returning their familiar calls with slight nods of approval.

However, not all findings have been as comforting. His physical examinations yield significant concerns with the presence of five tumours, each about 10 centimetres in radius located on his thighs. Furthermore, a small lump is noticeable on the right cornea and his front left leg presents some mobility issues.

In an effort to diagnose these issues, on July 2, Sak Surin underwent a procedure that included taking samples from his mouth, trunk tip, manure, and blood. The specimens were then sent to the Department of Livestock’s Veterinary Research and Development Centre for analysis.

The lab results looked promising, with no signs of parasites such as Trypanosoma Evans in Sak Surin’s blood or manure samples. Importantly, the animal tested negative for harmful disease carriers including tuberculosis genes, herpes viruses, antibodies to leptospira, non-structural protein from foot and mouth disease, or B. abortus antibodies.

A quarantine period of at least 30 days is projected for Sak Surin, during which rigorous health checks will be conducted on days 15 and 30, reported Bangkok Post.

-Agencies