Elephant Of The Month: Bhola

In leisurely walks by the riverside, Bhola often pauses, his trunk lightly traces the soft mud that he stands on. The relief of the natural substrata was the most basic necessity that Bhola was deprived of.  Bhola spent decades as a begging elephant forced to navigate the narrow streets of a village, violently prodded by a bullhook. […]

Read More

Ten Years with Our Dear Bhola

Bhola's past was riddled with pain, abuse and neglect which severely traumatized him for years. To add to his woes, Bhola’s owner kept him tethered by his tail, leaving him with a seriously infected tail injury and an insurmountable amount of pain that he underwent for ages.  On a fateful night, Bhola’s owners were illegally[…]

Read More

Bhola

Year of rescue: 2010 Age at the time of rescue: 45 years old Sex: Male Personality traits: Moody and reserved Recognisable features: Tuskless (makhna) and no tushes visible; small ears Present health condition: Bhola is completely blind in the right eye and gradually losing vision in his left eye; undergoing treatment[…]

Read More

Bhola continues to inspire

By Resham Beri Bhola is a 48 years old Asiatic elephant who was abused his entire life and forced to carry heavy loads on the highway as well as tourists for rides. He was rescued by Wildlife SOS and moved to Elephant Haven in Mathura, in November 2010 after surviving a truck accident that would have normally left any other elephant dead. It[…]

Read More

Bhola – from ‘skin and bones’ to strong and healthy

Bhola the 45 year old male elephant came in with more injuries than some soldiers returning from battle. Hit by a truck, it was several months before he could recover from injuries to the trunk, spine, back and shoulders. Bhola was an overworked and starved elephant to begin with, a veritable cadaver, yet an elephant with a strong will to[…]

Read More

Bhola’s story in the Daily Mirror

"Following years of horrific cruelty, elephant Bhola is happy again – thanks to help from British vets. The five-tonne bull was regularly whipped and beaten with an iron rod by his owners. It left him sightless – blind in one eye, with a cataract in the other. He was made to walk for hours on end with brutal leg chains so he could be […]

Read More

The rescue of Bhola, a blind elephant

This blind elephant named Bhola (meaning - "the innocent one") was recently the victim of an accident...hit by a truck, he suffered major injuries and veterinary help to just survive. The Wildlife SOS Delhi Elephant Welfare team provided treatment on the spot and continued with it by the roadside until we realized that Bhola would not survive if[…]

Read More

Rescuing Elephants From Road Accidents In India

We live in a world where screeching tires and shattering sounds of metal have taken over the harmony of the wild. In this unfortunate reality, wild animals often find themselves at the mercy of expanding human infrastructure and the roads connecting them. Massive vehicles are now predators in concrete jungles, and animals, big or small, often[…]

Read More

Animal Creativity On Display At Wildlife SOS!

Animals are ingenious. If they weren’t, surviving in the wild would have been impossible for them. And we are here to talk about their smarts. The animal kingdom is overflowing with creativity, and sitting right at the top of the pyramid are Homo sapiens. Humans have creatively shaped, moulded and terraformed the Earth’s surface like no[…]

Read More

Animals Embrace Winter At Wildlife SOS Rescue Centres

Just like summers, the onset of winters requires special and unique arrangements as the rescued animals under our care have to brace for changes in the weather. Northern parts of India get especially bone-chilling and the various Wildlife SOS rescue centres, therefore, have to pull all the tricks out of their hats for the animals to remain[…]

Read More

A Day At The Elephant Conservation And Care Centre!

As the first rays of sunlight escape the veil of wispy clouds, the elephant caregivers arrive at the Elephant Conservation and Care Centre (ECCC) in Mathura. They walk towards the various elephant enclosures, glance over the jumbos in deep sleep and make sure that they are all set to start the day. Some of the jumbos, like young Walnut, are[…]

Read More

Shining A Light On The Caregivers Of Wildlife SOS

A major part of Wildlife SOS’ day-to-day work includes running its rescue centres across the country to provide high-quality care to the resident animals – be it our elephants, bears or leopards. To keep the centres perfectly up and running in a seamless manner requires a passionate and loving group of people. The caregivers at Wildlife SOS[…]

Read More

A Tail of Torture: Common Tail Injuries In Rescued Elephants

Elephants under the care of Wildlife SOS suffer from trauma and wounds due to their tragic past of cruelty and abhorrent living conditions. Long periods of negligence, limited space for movement, little or no veterinary care and malnutrition lead to bodily harm. Elephants are found with various physical injuries such as infected wounds,[…]

Read More

The Road-Rail Quandary Plaguing India’s Wildlife

In modern civilisations, one thing that has changed human society remarkably is the construction of roads. Roads not only made far-off places more accessible, they also unlocked the doors for trade. It can be said that those were the first opportunities to interact with more varied people and cultures. It’s true that roads help us in many ways[…]

Read More

What Is A Begging Elephant?

You might be wondering where the question mark is in that query. But for us at Wildlife SOS, it is not a question but a reality which we have been dealing with for a long time, and still do. So we will try to answer what a begging elephant is as best as we can. These elephants are emaciated and malnourished, and made to walk on the streets of[…]

Read More

Staff Profile Of The Month: Suvidha Bhatnagar

Communications superstar and an avid lover of all that nature has to offer, this month’s staff highlight is a member of our team, known, loved and respected by everyone. Her infectious laughter and vivacious personality makes her the best team lead one could ever ask for. This month, we bring you the story of Ms. Suvidha Bhatnagar. Suvidha[…]

Read More

Staff Profile Of The Month – Dr. Ilayaraja

Hailing from the rich cultural heritage town of Puttukottai in Tamil Nadu, Dr. Ilayaraja Selvaraj has been an integral part of the Wildlife SOS family for the past 18 years. He is presently the Deputy Director of Veterinary Operations and Research at Wildlife SOS. Dr. Ilayaraja’s unmatched zeal and his larger-than-life attitude make him one of[…]

Read More

Celebrating Wildlife SOS’ Team Of Veterinarians On World Veterinary Day

It is believed that not all heroes wear capes, some of them don a green Veterinary scrubs and set out each day to ensure that the animals under our care are doing fine. The world calls them “veterinarians” but we call them “our wildlife heroes”! This World Veterinary Day, we take you on some exclusive insights from the veterinarians of […]

Read More

Healing Wounds With Compassion and Comfort at Wildlife SOS

The heartbreaking sight of a wounded elephant walking in pain along busy highways and narrow streets is the most prominent sign of abuse and ignorance that can be represented. Many people firmly believe that the elephant, whose body hosts chronic, infected wounds and abscesses, is actually well taken care of but the reality is far from what is[…]

Read More

Rescued Elephants Welcome Winters at Wildlife SOS

As the bright sunshine pierces through the dense fog and mist of the morning, our elephants can be seen pausing amidst their walks to bask under the sun at the Wildlife SOS Elephant Conservation and Care Centre. The month of December, with its unpredictable and delightful rainfall, prepared us all for a chilly winter that was lurking around the[…]

Read More

Giving Tuesday – Monumental “Then and Now” Images

A huge thank you from Wildlife SOS for all your Giving Tuesday 2020 support! We shared some striking "then and now" videos and images that really demonstrate the impact we've all made in these beautiful animals' lives. If you missed them on our Facebook and Instagram pages, you can see them here. If you would like to support Wildlife SOS[…]

Read More

Caring for Blind Elephants at Wildlife SOS

With Arya’s arrival at the Wildlife SOS Elephant Hospital, there are now a total of 6 rescued blind elephants under our care. These elephants have endured brutality and pain, which caused irreversible damage to their body and mind. Severe malnutrition coupled with lack of timely medical treatment for eye injuries that were caused by repeated […]

Read More

Elephant of the Month: Rajesh!

If you ever had the chance to visit our Elephant Conservation and Care Centre, other than our staff or a glimpse of our elephants on a walk, there is one more prominent and powerful voice that will welcome you – a loud and clear trumpet that tears through the composed calm of the Centre! For us all working at the Centres, we casually roll our[…]

Read More

Benefits of a Veggielicious Diet on Eat Your Vegetables Day!

We have all probably grown up with our parents having to chase us to finish that lone piece of broccoli or the bits of carrots that lay abandoned in our plates. Even at our schools, teachers would give us countless lessons on the importance of eating vegetables to gain strength and immunity. This holds true not only for us but also for the[…]

Read More

Keeper of the Month: Babu Lal!

Our elephants have the chance at life once again, due to the care and compassion of our elephant keepers, who work day-in and day-out so that our elephants are comfortable and content. Of one such large-hearted man is Babu lal, Asha and Suzy’s keeper, who hails from a village near Palwal, Haryana and has dedicated their entire life into taking[…]

Read More

A Big Leap for the Elephants! India’s First Elephant Hospital

Wildlife SOS just opened India's very first Elephant Hospital! To us this is truly historic, a milestone not only for Wildlife SOS an organization, but more importantly for injured and ailing elephants throughout India, who can now get the care and love they need in a state-of-the-art facility. On Friday, November 16, a bevy of supportive[…]

Read More

Animals With Arthritis

Causing stiffness, swelling and sometimes unbearable pain in the affected joints, arthritis affects a sizeable number of people in the world, hindering their mobility and everyday activities, and causing them immense discomfort and pain. Living with arthritis can be unimaginably difficult, and studies have shown that the resulting pain and[…]

Read More

Meet Suraj Pal, Our Kind Elephant Keeper

Suraj Pal has worked with Wildlife SOS for four years, acting as an elephant keeper at Wildlife SOS’ Elephant Care and Conservation Centre, Mathura. His understanding and respect for elephants is well-known among the staff at ECCC, and we thought we’d talk to him to find out a little more. How did you come to work for Wildlife SOS? I joined[…]

Read More

Working with Elephants

Steve Koyle is the Senior Elephant Keeper at the Phoenix Zoo. We asked him a bit about his job, as well as about the work he has done with the Wildlife SOS elephants: Many people would consider working with elephants to be a dream job. How did you end up doing what you do? Working with elephants is truly a dream job. As a young kid growing up, I[…]

Read More

Raju’s health status 6 months after rescue

It has been almost 6 months since you made it possible for us to rescue Raju. We wanted to give you an update on how he is doing. Many of the dozens of wounds that were covering his body have healed. He still has a large one on his front leg that has not completely healed, but has closed about 50%. The medical issue that is the most challenging[…]

Read More

The cost of rescuing and caring for an elephant

We are often asked the question of why it costs so much to rescue an elephant.  The above before and after photo of Bhola is a good visual of the difference we can make when we do it right.  In order to provide the proper rehabilitation, it takes a signficant financial investment.  There are other organizations that 'rescue' elephants and keep[…]

Read More

A volunteer’s experience

By Kirsty Angus We first found out about Wildlife SOS through a fellow Australian traveller and then saw a 2 page spread about the organization and the amazing work they were doing in one of our newspapers in Melbourne. We stayed for 2 weeks which passed incredibly quickly.  From our very first day we felt fully welcome and a part of the[…]

Read More

Cantaloupes and Footballs

By Sharon St. Joan  When Maya arrived at the Wildlife SOS Elephant Rescue Centre at Mathura, she weighed 3,890 kilos (8,558 pounds).  That may sound like a lot, but for a big elephant like Maya it wasn’t.  She was really skinny; she never seemed to get enough to eat at the circus, and the people there really weren’t[…]

Read More

Up Close and Personal with Dr. Yaduraj- Part 1

Working with elephants is a dream that many people have.  But what is it really like to work with an animal that can weigh more than five tons or 5,000 kg?  We bring you our 4th interview in a series that we are doing on the people who make the work of Wildlife SOS possible.  This one is with Dr. Yaduraj, who is the Senior Wildlife Veterinary[…]

Read More

Happy Days of Jambavant

  By Sharon St. Joan   During the monsoon, Jambavant can be found after a heavy downpour, walking along with the mud squishing between his toes.  He peers at the ground, waiting for bugs and termites to come up to the surface, and ants too! He enjoys having his fur all wet. For him the Agra Bear Rescue Facility, run by Wildlife[…]

Read More

Champa, the matriarch of Elephant Haven, passes on

"Champa" -  The word means a sanguine, brilliantly fragrant flower. Not so off the mark for the gentle elephant, Champa. Champa spent her entire life, one of slavery, working even with tumours on her legs, internal injuries and as an object to be utilized for tourism, so her owner could be rich! When we rescued Champa, we wanted not to "own"[…]

Read More

Champa the luck girl

It's hard to believe, but it has been a year since Champa arrived at Elephant Haven. Before being taken in by Wildlife SOS, Champa spent far too many years as a working elephant, and we are so pleased to be able to provide her with a comfortable retirement. Here are a few details about Champa's new life, as told by Baiju Raj from Wildlife[…]

Read More

Bijli arrives at Wildlife SOS Elephant Haven!

Last summer, Wildlife SOS’ ever vigilant informers at last spotted Bijli, a female elephant we had been tracking since 2009. She had been hit by a speeding vehicle while on the highway and her hind leg had set very badly leaving her with a permanent limp. A small sized gentle girl, Bijli had lived a harrowing life, changing owners[…]

Read More

Wildlife SOS helps a blind Elephant to his feet.

Wildlife S.O.S's love affair with elephants seems to be growing each day. Barely a few months after rescuing the beautiful and gentle Champa from a long life of hardship and misery, the WSOS rescue team came to the help of another pachyderm in dire need. It was close to midnight on the 23rd of September, 2010, when the Wildlife SOS rescue helpline […]

Read More

Our Social Media

Hotline Number | हॉटलाइन नंबर

Delhi NCT Region +91-9871963535
Agra Region (UP) +91-9917109666
Vadodra Region +91-9825011117
J&K Region +91 7006692300
+91 9419778280