Search for: sanjay

With the gradual increase in the number of cases of human-leopard conflicts, more and more leopards are suffering. With a vision to protect these precious felines, Wildlife SOS, in collaboration with the Maharashtra Forest Department, laid the foundation for the Manikdoh Leopard Rescue Centre (MLRC) in Junnar, Pune, which houses 37 rescued[…]

The name Sanjay means victorious, a title apt for this majestic tusker who has emerged triumphant from an uphill battle against illegal elephant trafficking and trade.  Today, as Sanjay celebrates his five years of freedom, we look back on his tumultuous life, celebrating his resilience and strength that stems not from his large stature but[…]

There is something majestic and regal about a tusker walking, in all his grandiosity. For wildlife enthusiasts, spotting a tusker in the wild is the high-point of their lives. However, the brutal trade of poaching and illegal wildlife trafficking has made these sightings in the wild rarer than ever. Of one such brutalising story is that of[…]

Yes, Sanjay is the biggest elephant in terms of size/height as compared to all our rescued elephants at our centers. He is approx. 50 years old.[…]

A twist of fate brought the elephant under the custody of the forest department and they requested our intervention. Years of abuse and mistreatment had had a detrimental effect on the elephant’s health. Partially blind in the left eye, Sanjay was severely malnourished with severe wounds on his body and even tail. The elephant’s feet are also[…]

Year of rescue: 2017 Age at the time of rescue: 50 years old Sex: Male Personality traits: Gentle Recognisable features: One of the biggest elephants under our care Present health condition: Sanjay is undergoing treatment for a wound on his left elbow which is regularly cleaned and dressed with antiseptic[…]

It was a fateful call from the local Forest Department that led to the rescue of Sanjay, our magnificent bull-tusker. Wildlife SOS was informed that Sanjay’s owners had cut chunks of his tusk and sold them in the black market for illegal trade of animal parts. Sanjay was in a grave situation as his owners were cunningly planning to challenge his […]

February 2017 brought some much welcomed respite from the chilly weather and a rather unexpected new arrival at the Elephant Conservation and Care Centre, Mathura. A call from the local Forest Department alerted the team to the plight of a young bull tusker whose owners had hacked off parts of his tusks in the hopes of selling them for money.[…]

In February we all united to organize the fastest rescue in Wildlife SOS history. With your help we put a team together to save "the Elephant with No Name." A few days later, again with your help, we gave him the name "Sanjay" — meaning victorious. ... When Sanjay arrived, he was wearing a bell. As you might recall, we often wait a few weeks[…]

Just a month after his rescue in the first week of February 2017, Sanjay, formerly known as the Elephant With No Name, has much more than just a name to be proud of. His recovery, both mental and physical, is slowly but steadily progressing under the dedicated care of our wonderful veterinarians and the other staff at the Elephant Conservation and […]

An urgent call on the evening of the fifth of February set about a chain of events that resulted in an emergency rescue mission to bring to safety an elephant who we now call Sanjay. Sanjay’s rescue was incredibly sensitive due to the nature of his story and the covert and urgent basis on which he needed to be brought to safety. This made it[…]

The elephant is a massive bull tusker that towers over the four brothers that claim ‘ownership’ over him. The ownership however, has no supporting documents or paperwork, making it wholly illegal. The elephant is gaunt, with hip bones and a spine that jut out awkwardly from his frame. His feet are in abominable condition – cracks run through […]

Q. What's Sanjay's story? How did you come to know about him? Ans: A twist of fate brought the elephant under the custody of the forest department and they requested our intervention. Years of abuse and mistreatment had had a detrimental effect on the elephant’s health. Partially blind in the left eye, Sanjay was severely malnourished with[…]

An Earth Day awareness event was organised by Working With Nature Group (WWN) and Delhi Development (DDA) at Sanjay Van on 22 April 2015. The event was attended by over 250 students from over 15 schools, 2 colleges as well as some residents of Delhi.  The chief Guest at the Function was the VC of DDA. Wildlife SOS team member, Bindia gave a talk[…]

Technology permeates every aspect of people's lives, and as the world takes swift steps with technologically-aided services, wildlife conservation initiatives are employing these as well. Conservation technology aims to maximise the capacity of technology in management systems for different environmental and conservation projects — be it[…]

In the wild, leopards exhibit certain behavioural characteristics that can range from territorial marking to sitting atop tall trees for a panoramic view. One way to encourage these behaviours for leopards under long-term care is through enrichments. Enrichments for animal welfare are elements that are designed to enhance the psychological and[…]

Remember the deluge Delhi faced last year? It’s still fresh in our memories. The incessant rainfall and subsequent flooding in Delhi-NCR displaced wild animals, forcing them out of their natural habitats and into urban areas in search of refuge. It also brought a halt to the lives of its human residents too. It was not just last year, this year […]

The impact of information is more when it is shared amongst people. When knowledge about wildlife conservation is spread through discussions and communication, it empowers us to think and act. Did you know that leopards, the magnificent spotted cats, are classified as ‘Vulnerable’ by the IUCN Red List due to habitat loss and conflict with[…]

In 2007, a heart-wrenching discovery at Srinagar's Botanical Garden led the Wildlife SOS team to two abandoned Asiatic black bear cubs. Tireless efforts were made to reunite them with their mother, but all attempts were in vain. Barely a week old, the tiny cubs were vulnerable without their mother’s presence. Leaving them all by themselves[…]

Dental health isn't just a concern for humans; it plays a crucial role in the well-being of all rehabilitated animals. From brushing and flossing to prevent cavities, to addressing bacterial films on teeth, proper oral care is essential. Beyond dental implications, good oral health positively influences overall welfare as well, as bacteria[…]

An ideal winter day for our resident animals is when the sun's rays manage to reach out through the mist to give them each a hug. [Picture (c) Wildlife SOS/ Mradul Pathak] But on some special days of this season, familiar beings wearing the striking colour of red receive an equally warm welcome from our sloth bears, elephants and[…]

There are many differences one can note while talking about wild animals and domesticated animals. The behaviour of wild animals is much more difficult to observe in their natural habitat, since it requires time, patience, knowledge, and sometimes, sheer luck. However, there are many researchers who spend their lives trying to find out the exact[…]

Ever wondered what to do if a leopard entered your house? Working to conserve leopards for several years now, Wildlife SOS has encountered numerous instances where leopards have ventured inside people’s residences. However, it is not so much about the leopard entering our home, but us humans entering the leopards’ home by encroaching their[…]

Leopards are elusive, nocturnal animals that are listed as ‘Near Threatened’ under the IUCN Red List. They are umbrella species that play an important role in maintaining the health of the ecosystem they are a part of.On the occasion of International Leopard Day, Wildlife SOS conducted a literary writing contest to help raise awareness about[…]

The Wildlife SOS Elephant Conservation and Care Centre (ECCC) provides a safe haven for our majestic resident elephants. Here, they can employ their natural tendency to socialise and form close bonds with each other. What makes them further admirable is their astounding intelligence. The social aptitude of our resident elephants includes traits[…]

Delhi has gone through several stages of urbanisation, albeit not in a positive direction for some of its original inhabitants. When the city was not there, the mighty Aravalli forests stood tall in its place, and the dense forests were home to numerous wild animals. As the green cover degraded and was slowly replaced by urban sprawl, the animals […]

For years, conservationists have grappled with the quandary of human-wildlife conflict. When growing human populations overlap with existing wildlife territory, the competition for space and resources leads to rising cases of conflict. The consequences of conflict can be horrific and one, of the many species that have been struggling really hard[…]

If you are living in an urban environment and planning to spend some time in nature, look around closely and you will find jungles within the city. Of course, most cities including the country’s capital are known better as concrete jungles, but you may be surprised to know that Delhi harbours some really old forests. These green spaces are now[…]

In a massive wildlife trafficking raid that took place in western India’s Gujarat, the Wildlife Crime Control Bureau (WCCB) Mumbai, Gujarat Forest Department and the Wildlife SOS-GSPCA team seized two rhinoceros horns and elephant ivory products. The raid took place at a shop in Raopura area near Vadodara city. Four people involved have been[…]

The Indian Rock python (Python molurus) is a widely found species and they inhabit various ecosystems and habitats. It is the largest snake found in India, measuring up to 16-20 feet in length and weighing as heavy as 90 kilograms! They are primarily nocturnal and terrestrial, but these ambush predators can be selectively arboreal if the need[…]

This year, the United Nations (UN) made a staggering announcement that the global human population would reach eight billion on 15 November 2022. And it sure did! This mammoth population relies on state-of-the-art facilities and rampant usage of natural resources. Due to anthropogenic activities, the planet has undergone surface changes of up to[…]

Though time has passed since Wildlife SOS drew the curtain on the trade of ‘dancing’ bears, one might wonder why we strived hard to declare World Sloth Bear Day on October 12, 2022. Conservation is a continuous, ever-changing field, and with the current scenario of the world, the challenges that wild animals face are far from coming to an[…]

We often tend to think that observing wildlife would require an expedition to far off and isolated places filled with natural vegetation. Perhaps because the word ‘wildlife’ is actually a combination of the words ‘wild’ and ‘life’. The tag of labelling a life form as wild is fundamentally a human concept. Interestingly, in most[…]

This is the story of two different kinds of elephants roaming two separate continents. Today, there are three surviving elephant species — the African Savannah elephant (Loxodonta africana), the African Forest elephant (Loxodonta cyclotis) and the Asian elephant (Elephas maximus). If we trace their origin, the prehistoric ancestors of these[…]

The need for conservation arises because of the unsustainable lifestyles we, as human beings, have been following. The planet reels under unrestrained pressure from businesses and industrial activities that have damaged nature, its habitats and their wild inhabitants. There is a dire need for people to be made conscious of their impact on the[…]

Monkey menace? Call the Langur manager!   This is a classic response on how to tackle this situation. With rapid deforestation, cities have become new homes to numerous various animals, including the Rhesus Macaque (Macaca mulatta). The species has established itself in the midst of major Indian cities such as Delhi, Chandigarh,[…]

A wild Sloth bear cub trapped in a barbed-wire fence is an extremely worrisome image. But as soon as the news flew in that the cub was in distress, a rescue team immediately rushed to the location to the aid of the helpless cub. The one-and-a-half year old female bear had found herself in a perilous situation after getting caught in a[…]

This is Mowgli’s story, but this Mowgli is different from one in the popular children's book – The Jungle Book. His past is more harrowing, a tale which should make anyone teary-eyed. In 2017, a 10-week-old sloth bear cub was found nursing from his mother’s lifeless body outside the Sanjay-Dubri National Park in Madhya Pradesh. The mother[…]

Elephant care is a matter of urgent importance for wildlife conservationists in India. With the dwindling elephant population, the focus is not only on the preservation of the elephant population in the wild but also on the welfare of the substantial number of captive elephants that are present within human settlements. Keeping this in mind, a[…]

While many know of Wildlife SOS’ leopard conservation efforts, a little-known fact is that we have also had the opportunity to study and work with tigers, lions, and some of the lesser-known Indian wild cats such as the Rusty-spotted cat, Jungle cat, and Leopard cat. India is a nation blessed with a rich natural heritage and[…]

Wildlife conservation is exciting in many ways and has its own thrills. It is no less adventurous than what we witness in a National Geographic or BBC Earth wildlife documentary, such as walking through dense forests to radio collar one of the most ubiquitous big cats – leopards. In a successful Public Private Partnership, the Maharashtra[…]

Asian elephants differ physiologically from their African counterparts, primarily in the shape of their ears, their build, their height and even their temperament. Rajesh is one of the rescued tuskers who resides at ECCC. [Photo (c) Wildlife SOS/Mradul Pathak] Some of the common differences between the two species are enlisted[…]

The Wildlife SOS Field of Dreams witnessed an unusual amount of activity on the morning of 4th of July, this year. It turns out our elephant care staff was counting days to this grand day of celebration when they would organize a surprise feast for one of our beloved elephants— Raju! Seven years ago, everyone was moved to tears with Raju’s[…]

*Warning: Graphic Content* Conservation and Rehabilitation centres work on a microscopic imitation of the original habitats of long-ranging species such as leopards. Hence they have to come up with creative solutions to the challenges they face. Fortunately, modern veterinary science has turned complicated procedures like eye-surgery, dental[…]

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[…]

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 […]

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[…]

Adorned with 118 names, the Wall of Dreams is dedicated to our supporters and donors, all over the world! [Photo (c) Wildlife SOS/Shirina Sawhney] Leaving behind a lifetime of abuse and neglect, our elephants do not just come to the Wildlife SOS Elephant Conservation and Care Centre for care and comfort, they come home, the home that they[…]

Not all heroes wear capes, some wear Wildlife SOS T-shirts and wake up every morning, ever-so-diligently to go check on the animals that they take care of – indeed, these are the unsung heroes of Wildlife SOS, they are the animal keepers at our rescue centres across the country. Hailing from different corners of the country, these men stand[…]

The tusks of captive bull elephants are often trimmed to make them safer to work with in captivity. The ivory trimmed off Sanjay’s tusks was illegally sold by his former owners in the black market in the illegal wildlife trade. We currently do not have details about the whereabouts of his ivory, but our intelligence gathering team is working on[…]

Watching young Mowgli exuberantly bounding around his enclosure at the Agra Bear Rescue Facility, it is hard to imagine that it has been almost a year since he first came into our lives. Mowgli’s story was one that had us all in tears. He was found clinging to his dying mother after she was electrocuted by poachers outside the Sanjay-Dubri[…]

Last month, the Wildlife SOS team in Agra played host to a group of government veterinarians from the north Indian state of Uttarakhand as part of an exposure visit and training program on Wildlife and Health Management by the Wildlife Institute of India with the aim of improving the skills of veterinarians in handling wildlife health emergencies. […]

Earlier this week, local farmers in Brahmanwada village, Nashik stumbled upon three tiny leopard cubs huddled together amidst the dense sugarcane fields while harvesting their crops. The cubs were barely old enough to open their eyes and were mewling helplessly for their mother so the farmers called in the Forest Department for help.  It is not[…]

There’s a story behind every beautiful picture and every action packed video on the Wildlife SOS website and social media – and at the centre of that story is a photographer putting himself in some rather unruly positions to give the world a glimpse into the lives of our rescued animals and the work we do. Mradul Pathak has been a photographer […]

Last month, the sight of a leopard wandering in the sugarcane fields caused major uproar in a remote village near Satara, Maharashtra. In recent years, there has been a rise in the number of leopard encounters in the state due to human encroachment and rapid deforestation caused by creation of sugar cane fields for farmers, forcing these majestic[…]

Wires hang precariously between the trees at the edge of the Sanjay Dubri Tiger Reserve in the Siddi district of Madhya Pradesh. The voltage that shoots through the wires is dangerously high, much above the permissible limit – strung low by poachers that have only the worst intentions at heart. An unsuspecting female bear wanders close to the[…]

Spread across 467 sq kms of undulating plains and deciduous forests, the Sanjay-Dubri National Park located in Sidhi district of Madhya Pradesh is blessed with a rich population of diverse wildlife species. Earlier this month, a female sloth bear followed closely by her tiny ten week old baby set out for the day in their quest for food only to[…]

As dawn broke over Somatwadi village, located a few kilometers away from the bustling city of Pune, seasonal farmers woke up to another busy day harvesting their sugarcane crops. Around the same time, a mother leopard decided to venture out to the neighboring forest to hunt while leaving her young off-springs hidden safely amidst the tall dense[…]

In the last decade, the state of Uttarakhand has seen a dramatic increase in man-animal conflicts, predominantly problems relating to the leopard population residing in the vast hilly forests. However, due to rapid urbanisation resulting in degradation of forests and a decline in natural prey base, these majestic wild cats are being forced out of[…]

The Wildlife SOS team at the Manikdoh Leopard Rescue Centre recently celebrated World Sparrow day and International Day of Forests with over a 100 students from Vidya Pre-school in Junnar, Maharashtra. Dr. Ajay, the senior veterinarian at MLRC was accompanied by Forester-Mr. D. D. Salunke and Forest Guards-Mrs. Saurna Kutekar and Mr. Sanjay[…]

by- Pia Sharma In a very eventful week the Wildlife SOS team from Manikdoh Leopard Rescue Center, Maharashtra has helped rescue and rehabilitate two Leopards. Coincidentally both Leopards were rescued from wells, in separate parts of Maharashtra. The Wildlife SOS team received a call from, Sanjay Kadu of the Forest Department regarding a 6 month[…]

It is challenging to deal with man-animal conflict, especially in areas where tribals and animals breathe the same air. In such cases what happens is that hunt and wild animals retaliate when they sense danger. To resolve such issues Wildlife SOS has always been on its toes. The organization’s goal has been to help the local communities to[…]

By Aishuwarya Sudarshan Wildlife SOS celebrated Wildlife Week this year with the usual pomp and enthusiasm as always in the past. Wildlife SOS team members in different parts of India organized and participated in awareness activities and events for wildlife sensitization. Awareness programs, documentary screening, nature walks and participation[…]

By Aishuwarya Sudarshan Everybody at the Delhi International airport thought it was just another day at work, security, scanners and aero planes. Little did they know things were about to change. The Jet Airways flight from Thailand had landed, the date 10th September 2012. Most passengers were rushing to get through the transfer gate to catch[…]

Surender and Rohtas and rescued wolf snake Last night, in the middle of a festive social event in Agra for Wildlife SOS-India and WSOS-USA staff, an emergency call was placed to our Wildlife SOS 24-Hour Animal Rescue Hotline. It seems that a snake was lodged in the plumbing of a washing machine at the residence of Col. Sanjay[…]

In a joint Anti operation carried out by Wildlife SOS with Haryana Forest Dept and Haryana Police based on intelligence intercepted by Wildlife SOS, it was shocking to learn that wildlife poaching was rampant in the border areas of Delhi.An ambush operation was arranged and the team had an all night vigil which we hoped would yield results.A gang[…]

The current issue of SPAN Magazine (a publication of the US Embassy in New Delhi) features an article about Wildlife SOS.  Here's an excerpt: Grab your helmet and get on the bike,” shouted Wildlife SOS rescuer Sanjay Acharya to Jon Dunn, an American volunteer visiting India for the first time. The two were off to a Vodafone store in Noida,[…]

Some of the Wildlife Rescue Units recent snake rescues have been by far the coolest in over a decade of rescues. A Leith's sand snake rarely sighted before in Delhi was rescued late afternoon by the Wildlife SOS Rescue Unit, from a 25 foot long garden pipe by WSOS volunteer. In order to effectively restrain the snake which is an extremely fast[…]

The Wildlife S.O.S. Reptile Rescue cell in Delhi is on a roll these days. With the Monsoons flushing out snakes from all hidey holes and leading them to public places and people's homes looking for food and a dry shelter, the Wildlife S.O.S. 24 hour rescue helpline is flooded with "distress calls". In the last week alone Wildlife S.O.S. has come […]