Keepers' Diaries, October 2004

Ithumba Reintegration Unit

A dramatic and disastrous event involving the Ithumba ten took place during the early hours of the morning of the 21st, when a rabid dog forced its way through the electric wires of the Night Stockade, and before being despatched by the Keepers, bit Wendi, Olmalo, Taita, and Selengai on a foot and jumped up onto Mulika’s ear, nicking it in one place. Whilst the vaccine was being sourced, and information sought about how we should now procede, the Mobile Veterinary Unit and our Vet, David Ndeereh, made haste to Mombasa to procure enough vaccine to inoculate the five elephants that had been bitten, and the Senior Warden took the decision to isolate them from those who had escaped harm, fearing contamination through saliva. The information we needed was sourced from our friends in the Indian Wildlife Trust, where rabies is very prevalent, and who had experience with captive elephants having been exposed. We understood full well how much extra distress would be inflicted by separating the group, and this concerned us deeply, so having been able to establish that the risk by exposure through saliva was minimal, we immediately gave instructions that the two groups must be re-united. Meanwhile, the five who had escaped being bitten were given an immunisation vaccine, and those that had, are set to receive the same regimen as an exposed human which involves a 28 day course of weekly injections, plus two boosters given a month apart.