The bond between a mother and her child is special and can never be replaced. This is true for humans and animals.
All babies rely on their mother, not just for food, shelter, and care but also for love. They need to be raised with the warmth of their mother’s love for them to thrive in this world. Having your own family is important, and it helps us grow. However, there are some cases where babies get separated from their mothers.
Can you just imagine the pain of being separated from your child? It could be unbearable. What about for the child who does not know anything in this world? Losing a mother or a family member would be devastating.
Unfortunately, this is exactly what happened to this baby elephant. He’s just one year and nine months, but he was completely alone. That’s the reason why he was rescued and was taken to an elephant sanctuary.
Can you imagine how scared and lonely this baby was?
There were no reports as to what might have happened to this little elephant’s family. Did they abandon him, or was he lost? Though, we’re happy that the rescuers were able to track him down and rescue him.
They named the rescued elephant Dok Geaw.
Dok Geaw was then taken to Elephant Nature Park. There, he was checked and rehabilitated. Elephant Nature Park is located in Chiang Mai province, Northern Thailand, and was established in the 1990s.
Their mission is to be able to provide a sanctuary, rescue, and rehabilitation center for elephants as well as other animals such as cats and dogs.
True to their word, they immediately provided Dok with the needed medication for his injuries. Sadly, that’s when they realized how big the impact was for a calf to not have his mother.
In the animal kingdom, the guidance of a mother is very important. Without her, the child would not even survive the wild.
“During their early years the calf follows the mother everywhere learning invaluable survival lessons from her and the rest of her herd,” explains the staff of Elephant Nature Park.
Can you imagine what happened to this baby elephant? A confused baby who doesn’t know where to go, how to feed, and how to survive. He didn’t have any family, he was all alone. As we all know, elephants are herd animals, meaning, they protect the herd. Without a herd, without their matriarch, a calf won’t survive.
The wild is a very dangerous place to be for an orphaned baby elephant.
Not only that, Dok would have grown alone and depressed. In fact, it was already obvious when he was rescued. But somehow, the other elephants from the sanctuary seemed to know that someone needed their love and friendship.
The beautiful encounter was caught on camera, and it will surely melt your heart.
The entire herd of elephants that live in the sanctuary gathered, and they all ran to greet the baby! It wasn’t staged, and it was as if they knew there was a baby who needed them.
The group of elephants all trotted over to the place where the sanctuary held the baby elephant. There, the baby was being rehabilitated.
The herd went to the location and gathered around the place where Dok was. They were all too eager to say ‘hi’ to the newest member of their family.
Just then, we see the baby elephant’s eyes widen with happiness. His spirit was lifted! He immediately called out to them, as if telling them where he was. All the elephants rushed to the child, and then they stuck their trunks through the opening of the gates – welcoming the baby to the herd.
Feeling the warm welcome of the herd, Dok immediately regains the light from his eyes. He looked so happy because there, in this sanctuary, he now has a new family.
From the looks of it, Dok would perfectly fit the herd.
While we do understand that Dok still needs his mother, the herd’s love, acceptance, and guidance will surely help Dok grow.
Watch the full video of how a herd of elephants ran to welcome the newest addition to their family – Dok Gaew.
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