Dung Counts and Vitamin Balls

Lakshmi having a snack in her clean bed

A day in the life of a volunteer at MEF is fairly structured. Each morning, volunteers awake at dawn to meet their Mahout and walk to their elephant’s bed. Here, the Mahout will greet his elephant with a friendly “Ayubowan,” which is “hello” in Sinhalese. After a few loving pats on the trunk from the Mahout, he then leads his elephant out so volunteers can safely clean the bed.

Here is where the fun begins. As soon as the bed is elephant-free, volunteers pick up, move and count the dung left from the elephant the night before. Volunteers are instructed to keep track of dung counts as a way to ensure the elephant is healthy and their digestive system is working normally. Pooja seems to maintain a steady count of 60. 

Heading down to the river for bath time

Once the bed is cleaned, the elephants at MEF have a bath in the river. Washing an elephant is a unique experience, but it can also be a dangerous one. Sometimes an elephant will kick its leg or flap its trunk in the river, which could cause injury to someone who is inexperienced in working with elephants. The Mahout instructs the elephant to lie on its side, making certain the elephant’s back is the only part of the body that volunteers can wash.

It has been three days since I last washed Pooja and my arms are still aching. Elephants have a whole lot of mass that need to be cleaned. While many zoos and other less-primitive elephant orphanages have access to wire brushes to clean an elephant, Mahouts at MEF prefer to clean their elephants with coconuts. Yes…coconuts.

A Mahout will cut a coconut in half and then shave the edges to make an angled brush. Mahouts strictly instruct volunteers, with broken English, to hold the shell firmly with four fingers on top with the thumb on the bottom. Then, one can begin the long process of scrubbing the elephant’s body clean.

A Mahout instructing volunteers on proper washing techniques

Although the process is long, tedious and requires a great deal of physical effort, bathing an elephant is quite therapeutic. The elephant is in a Zen-like state when in the water. When Pooja is being washed, she  closes her eyes, lets out little sighs and moves her trunk up to touch our hands, almost as a way to thank us for washing her.

Once the Mahout approves of your wash, it is time for vet checks. Vet checks are when volunteers, with the supervision of the Mahout, will check the elephant’s feet for injury or infection. Vet checks also include the presentation of the daily vitamin ball. Just like a child hates taking their vitamins; volunteers disguise the elephant’s pills in a ball of sweet dough, distracting the elephant from what they are actually eating. 

A vitamin ball that was spit out...not up to the elephant's standard

After vet checks, volunteers spend the afternoon working on various projects for MEF. Projects in the works this week are repairing the garden on site and reorganizing the museum at MEF. 

Volunteers planning enrichment games

As the sweltering heat starts to dwindle in the afternoons, volunteers, workers and even the elephants start to get anxious. Afternoons mean one thing: enrichment. Enrichment is the time where elephants are allowed free time to play games. Volunteers plan creative games like hiding bags of bananas or elephant grass for the animals to find, and then enjoy. 

Elephant grass in a bag with holes for the elephant's to find

Elephants can also practice their balancing skills on the agility course. Enrichment is a time for the elephants to socialize together as well, or a time for Pooja and Lakshmi to have a little cuddle. 

When enrichment ends, Mahouts lead their elephants back to their clean beds for the rest of night. Volunteers say goodnight to their elephant and end the day with a group meeting, expressing their favorite moments of the day.

Pooja the Protagonist

Meet Pooja, the elephant I am assigned during my time in Sri Lanka.

Pooja practicing standing on her hind legs

Pooja is the daughter of Lakshmi, another elephant being treated here at MEF. Pooja was the first elephant born to a domesticated elephant in Sri Lanka. Even at the age of 25, Pooja is commonly referred to as “the baby” to volunteers and workers.

While Pooja may be the smallest and youngest elephant on site, volunteers say she has a bigger appetite than all the others combined. I can attest to this as I am in charge of counting her dung each morning.

Not only is Pooja regarded as the baby, she is also recognized for being quite a ham. If a Mahout, (an elephant’s handler), is paying more attention to another elephant, Pooja makes it very clear she would like the focus back on her. When she is in the river, she will flap her tail against the water, splashing everyone in sight. If she is in the field, she will let out a loud yell, flap her ears and bob her head in order to catch your eye again.

Pooja practicing in her agility training 

Since Pooja is a younger elephant, MEF encourages her Mahout to train her on agility courses. Pooja’s Mahout will speak to her and touch her, instructing her do certain skills like standing on her back feet or balancing on all fours on a small rock. 

One of the most interesting aspects I have learned on this trip thus far is that elephants are extremely intelligent creatures. If Pooja is walking and she sees a volunteer holding a banana, she will walk over to the volunteer because she knows that type of food is for her. In the afternoons, Pooja starts to get excited by bobbing her head up and down because she knows the afternoon means “playtime.”

Lakshmi and Pooja snuggling up after a long day

Elephants are surprisingly human-like as well.  As the volunteers and I watch Pooja interact with her mother in the afternoons, we almost all tear up just seeing the two of them together. When they first see each other, it is like they have not seen one another in years; they both make a loud cry.  Lakshmi tenderly checks over Pooja with her trunk, ensuring her daughter is okay since the last time she has seen her. Then, the two eat, play and cuddle until it is time for bed.

Pooja goofing off next to her mother

I'm coming for you Guatemala!

Así es la vida.  In English, this is the life.  And, honestly, I can't believe this life right now.

Tomorrow I leave for #Guatemala with Hearts in Motion.  I can sit here and try to imagine everything I will experience, the people I will meet and the things I will do, but that's the beauty of this trip.  It's all about the discovery.  The discovery of what life has to offer and what life looks like outside of my Pullman bubble.

There are twenty or so of us going from Washington State University.  A mixture of majors including nutrition, pre-medicine, nursing, and then there's me with the camera.  We've gone through our training, including Spanish classes, Guatemalan culture and have done our meet-and-greets.  I think I can speak for all of us when I say that we are ready to go.

However, when I say ready to go, I mean in reality I am sitting in the middle of basically my entire closet.  I have five things of bug spray...which I have no idea how that added up so fast.

 You will continue to see Así es la vida throughout my posts.  This theme to me compels me to meet someone every day and to open my mind to lives outside of my own.  What this program as a whole means to me is the opportunity to truly explore that saying "World Class: Face to Face"  and to literally meet a new face each day, and my hope is to bring you the life of that new face each day.

However, today, right now, this is the life of a anxious backpack journalist, ready to hit the road and brutally aware of how bad she is at packing.

A Little on Elephants...

The welcome sign at the MEF site

Nestled two hours outside of Colombo is the Millennium Elephant Foundation, a home to Lakshmi, Pooja, Rani and Bandara, just some of the elephants that are cared for at the site.

The Millennium Elephant Foundation is a nongovernmental organization charity that started in 1999 with the assistance of the World Society for the Protection of Animals (WSPA). MEF is dedicated to improving the lives of injured or captive elephants while influencing and advising other international organizations on proper elephant treatment. 

At Millennium, workers and volunteers see elephants that have been injured, neglected or abused. Some even have injuries from landmines following a 30-year-long civil while others suffer disabilities from the tsunami in 2004. 

The main office of MEF where all things elephant are planned and prepared

 

The foundation cares for captive elephants which are a significant problem in Sri Lanka. To own an elephant here means extreme wealth. Some purchase an elephant and chain it in their front yard, simply to show their wealth. Owning an elephant requires a great deal of money (food, veterinarian visits, etc.).   Therefore, many of these privately owned elephants are denied the proper care they require. Even if an elephant is receiving proper treatment by their owner, when that owner dies, the elephant can get passed down to someone who may have no interest or knowledge of elephants whatsoever. 

An elephant mural volunteers work on in the afternoons

MEF also protects elephants from being hired out for labor. Elephants are frequently put to work in the logging industry in Sri Lanka. Logging elephants are often abused and live in poor conditions.  They can develop damages to their tusks including nerve damage and bleeding gums. 

Howdah- heavy chairs are another abuse to elephants that MEF sees. These chairs are attached to elephants and are used to carry tourists. While many think this is an enjoyable means of getting around, the chairs in fact cause extreme pain to elephants. The Howdah has a blanket that drapes over the elephant.  It sometimes conceals deep open wounds and spinal damage. MEF is working to ban these chairs. 

A volunteer rubbing ointment on a Howdah-injured elephant

Temple elephants are also apparent at MEF. These elephants are usually left to stand outside temples all day, by themselves. These conditions do not meet an elephants’ physical and mental capacities each day. Temple elephants are rare to see at MEF because these elephants are considered to be acceptable: no one can censor anything of religious affiliation in Sri Lanka.

The foundation saves its elephants by paying owners to care for the animals. MEF believes that in order to do the most good, it needs to entice owners to hand over their elephants to the organization by paying them, not receiving payment.

By Plane...By Car...By Tuk Tuk...

The preparation before takeoff...packing

Thirty six hours later, two airplanes, two taxis, and one "tuk tuk" later. I can officially say my feet are firmly planted on the ground in Sri Lanka.

Flying over 15 hours to Dubai was quite an experience. I would like to make a suggestion to all airline officials that individuals in coach should board from the back of the plane, that way one never has to see the glitz and glamour of first class on an international Emirates Air flight.

Saying goodbye at SeaTac

Passing the private beds, hot towels, and complimentary champagne, I made my way to row 32, snuggling up in a middle seat and mentally preparing myself for a long journey.

While I thought an eight-hour layover in Dubai would be torturous, it was actually quite the opposite. The Dubai airport was fascinating--so diverse in people, races, customs and cultures. On my flights, Emirates Air crew together spoke over 10 languages in order to accommodate all of the different backgrounds on the plane.

Prayer room directions at the Dubai International Airport

I was struck by the novel sights I encountered in Dubai.  Walking through one terminal, I noticed there were at least 10 prayer rooms for individuals of all religions to spend time and meditate in, not something we are used to seeing at SeaTac for example.

Another difference was immediately apparent. Americans sure do like to "supersize" everything. To wake up, I ordered a coffee from Starbucks in the terminal. When I thought I was receiving a "grande" size drink, I in fact got something that looked like it was made for Barbie. I spoke with a man from Australia in line and he explained that to them, coffee, soda, chocolate, etc. are treats to people over here. They do not need a gallon of Diet Coke to get by each day.

From Dubai it was another five hours to Sri Lanka. Once I arrived, I had to take different modes of transportation to arrive at the Millennium Elephant Foundation site. One mode was a tuk tuk, a three-wheeled taxi where t heir drivers feel staying in the proper lane is not always necessary and honking is how to communicate with other drivers.

As I crossed my fingers I would make it to my destination all in one piece, I noticed the amazing colors, sights and smells of Sri Lanka. Every town was electric. Women were dressed in brightly colored garments, the smell of curry and pineapple wafted in the air and people were scattered everywhere, talking, laughing, and yelling over those tuk tuk horns. Sri Lanka was alive.

Surviving the long drive, I made it to the site in the afternoon, just as Washingtonians were probably going to bed. I decided to push through and stay awake, there was just too much to see.

So stay tuned.  Next up, Sri Lanka's Millennium Elephant Foundation.

About the Murrow College Backpack Journalism Project

Take a close up look at the medical relief program "Hearts in Motion" and how students took part as backpack journalists in a special program offered by The Edward R. Murrow College of Communication at Washington State University.


More info can be found here.

Animal Rescue Training in Nicaragua

By Bill McKee Murrow College Backpack Journalism Project Read more from Bill on his Backpack Journalism blog.

Along the banks of Laguna de Apoyo, a lake formed in the crater of a dormant volcano in Nicaragua, an unlikely group has gathered – veterinarians, rescue experts and volunteers preparing for disasters. When big storms like Sandy or Katrina strike, causing destruction and mayhem, people are not the only ones who need rescuing.  Pets and livestock are also at risk.

Volunteers gather around the banks of Laguna de Apoyo.

Rescue specialist Kim Little normally trains firemen, police and rescue response teams on what to do in the event of disaster.  But this week Little is some 3,000 miles away in Central America, teaching technical animal rescue. “This class was designed to help animal rescue (workers) get the skill level to work with (human) rescuers, and (to give human) rescue people the knowledge to be able to work with the animals without being harmed,” said Little. Little has been running a rescue training business out of Billings, Mont., since 1982.  He grew up in Colfax on the Palouse in eastern Washington and says he draws on his outdoor experiences river-rafting and climbing to develop his training program.

Volunteers prep for the pulley.

“I’m here to help train people from the United States who wanted to come down to learn and possibly be volunteers for World Vets when a disaster strikes.  But I’m also here to train local people, because even with a World Vets response, it’s going to be 24 to 48 hours before they’re going to be there,” Little said. Little is running the program for World Vets, a non-profit organization that designs international veterinary and disaster relief programs to help animals worldwide.  It has built clinics around the world and provides surgical training and practical experience to veterinarians and students, both abroad and from the U.S. With Little’s help, World Vets has developed this program, north of Granada in the Laguna de Apoyo Nature Reserve, to address a missing element in disaster relief – hands-on technical training for animal rescuers.

Volunteers learn to use        the pulleying system.

For Kansas State University veterinary student Laura Schurr, the training is an opportunity to go beyond the standard care she learns in class lectures. “After seeing all the destruction in Haiti, I remember watching on TV after the earthquake, I knew that was a place where I could be of help,” Schurr said. The group spent a day in class learning the basics – the organizational structure of a rescue team, how to read animals and approach a rescue situation, and basic knots used in rescue operations.  The next few days were spent out on the lake, putting those classroom exercises to the test.  The group practiced rope rescues on water and on land, basic boat rescue techniques, and learned to devise safe and effective pulley systems for harnessing and raising injured people and animals to safety from below.

Rope tying is demostrated to volunteers.

Graduates of the course are certified at a level higher than that required by the Federal Emergency Management Agency for animal rescue, and their names will be added to a database of potential disaster relief volunteers to be called on in case of an international disaster. The rescue training is just a small part of the mission in Nicaragua, however. World Vets is about to open its second clinic in the city of Granada – a training center for both foreign and local veterinarians. Dr. Sarah Seitz is a World Vets veterinarian working to develop the clinic.  A recent graduate of Washington State University’s College of Veterinary Medicine, Seitz says the programs that World Vets offers provide a unique opportunity for veterinarians and students who hope to brush up on their skills.

Volunteers undergo a final exam to test their skills.

“It’s a good place for them to come practice surgery in a low-stress environment.  They get one-on-one training, which is really important.  In most vet schools around the world, that is not available,” said Seitz. At the center in Granada, World Vets provides Latin American veterinarians and students with free surgical training, while international students can enroll in programs that allow them to work with experienced professionals in a modern surgical center – an opportunity many institutions lack.

Veterinarians and students receive free surgical training.

The center in Granada provides free health care, including spays and neuters, for the animals of local residents, as well as strays.  Locals get valuable help for their pets, while students get practical clinical experience. With surgical centers and rescue operation programs across the globe, World Vets works to increase the standard for animal care worldwide, providing vets and volunteers the opportunity to learn under ideal conditions, while still preparing for inevitable disaster.