More than 75 elephants
This was started in 1975 with five orphan babies.
Orphan elephants are directed from Department of Wildlife Conservation. Whenever they became orphan in the wild due to many reasons. (e.g. Mothers died or killed)
Because Pinnawala Elephant Orphanage is the ex situ conservation facility established to accommodate orphan elephant.
No, some of them are born here under captive conditions.
Elephant conservation.
Average 70- 80 years under captive conditions.
Sometimes we do, because many of them were born under captive conditions. They are hard to defense in natural conditions. Under prolong rehabilitation programme, we were able to release two elephants to the forested facility maintain by Department of Wild Life Conservation.
1. Physical needs – Good shelter, quality food and sufficient water. 2. Veterinary care-Treat them with care. Attend on their sicknesses. 3. Environmental needs and choices (moving freely/ bathing at river). 4. Friends to associate with and find their patners.
All elephants that are living in the Orphanage are under semi wild and adults are very strong and weighed about 4-5 tons. Hence, it is not an easy task to control such a large animal. The chain is just hanging around its neck and connect to fore limb to use in an emergency and this prevent the elephant running amok in an event of an unforeseen incident. During veterinary procedures, the foot chain serves as safety device. When attending an elephants for treatment and management chains are required to restrain the animal. So chains are necessary to keep the elephant prevent harming himself when running and use to tie them at such a time in order to keep him off from public.