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Maimed Thai Elephant Takes Walk (r)



Maimed Thai Elephant Takes Walk 

LAMPANG, Thailand 
 
AP October 5, 1999:    Motola, the elephant maimed by a land mine and saved
by emergency surgery to amputate her foot last month, on Tuesday took her
first walk since the operation. 

The veterinarians tending the 38-year-old elephant said the walk appeared
to boost the animal's spirits. 

''It took a long time for Motola to walk for 30 meters (yards), but she
seems so happy,'' said Preecha
Puangkham, head of Hang Chat Elephant Hospital in the northern province of
Lampang. ''I can feel the
joy she has from being outside, even though it looks painful to go around
hobbling on her three good
legs.'' 

Preecha and an elephant trainer kept Motola company on her first walk in
almost 40 days. Preecha
noticed the elephant eating fresh weeds and leaves she found along the way. 

''Her sleep and appetite are good,'' he said. ''From now on, Motola will
enjoy some 20 minutes of
walking every day as part of the treatment to keep her mental state healthy.'' 

Doctors amputated Motola's left front foot after it was mangled when she
stepped on a land mine in the
border area between northern Thailand and Myanmar. 

Her recovery has been difficult: She has been weakened by the stress of
having to support her
5,940-pound bulk on her uninjured legs, and her survival has been in doubt.
But her prognosis has
improved this week, and her doctors have been trying out a splint on her
bad leg. 


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