SURAT THANI: Veterinarians are making plans to sedate and treat a male elephant spotted with a broken hind leg and other injuries in Kaeng Krung National Park.
The male pachyderm, aged 6-7 years old, was seen using one of its front legs and trunk to move very slowly as its hind leg was not functional, said Keerati Phetthong, assistant chief of the park in Chaiya district on Saturday.
An initial check showed that the elephant also had a broken left tusk and a portion of large intestine was seen hanging from its rectum. The animal might have suffered injuries from an accident a long time ago, he said. Local residents found the injured animal and alerted him on Saturday.
Mr Keerati asked the Region 4 Protected Areas office of the Department of National Parks, Wildlife and Plant Conservation to send a team of veterinarians to help treat the pachyderm.
Five tranquilliser darts will be fired into the animal’s hide to sedate it so that it can be moved to another site for treatment.