Asanje, a beautiful elephant with a mild temperament has had a very difficult journey.  First was the trauma of loosing her mother, and then the mystery incident in the forest towards the end of October which almost cost her life and sight, and  the complications that have continued since then.  Through all this she remains with a fighting spirit determined and stoic. 

Recently a huge bulge developed on her forehead, and we watched and waited as this developed assuming that it was a boil that would eventually ripen and burst.  It did ripen and developed into a soft mass which we eventually resorted to cutting open to release the pus and toxins once we thought the time was right.  This was with the help of the Vet Dr. Sanjay on the 24th January.  This must have been making Asanja feel very unwell and we hope that after this she will really make good headway and recover completely, although she has a long road ahead.  Her body condition remains poor but her blood readings are improving so we remain hopeful. 

She heads out into the forest daily with her much loved Keepers and joins the others at will, preferring the company of the tiny babies as she is acutely aware how fragile she is and being around robust pushy elephants her size for long periods of time she prefers to avoid right now.  She is feeding well, loves her milk and loves her stockade which she revisits throughout the day.