Chilla:Yogi, the elephant rescued by the Forest Department officials of Rajaji National Park (RNP), has adjusted very well to his new surroundings in the elephant camp in the Chilla Range.His enclosure has been barricaded with bamboo so as to keep him safe from the wild elephant herds that sometimes enter the staff quarters. Although plans of rehabilitating him in the wild are dim, RNP Director, Mr Sunil Pandey, is making sure that the human contact with Yogi is a little as possible. Only Yogi’s mahout Riaz and WTI volunteer Kadambari have unrestricted access to Yogi’s enclosure.

Yogi is on a diet of infant formula milk. Initially he was being fed with a tube, but his obstinate refusal to learn to suckle has forced his keepers to bottle feed him. “Yogi drinks about 20 lts of milk in a day and we have started introducing soy as a protein supplement and multi-vitamins in his diet,” says Ms Kadambari.

By now Yogi knows that the wooden table outside his enclosure is the place from where his milk comes. When he gets hungry, he not only makes angry noises, but also stands near the bamboo fence trying to reach out to the bottle on the table.

Watching the antics of this little calf is indeed amazing. Yogi has been provided with a little plastic tub of water to play with. But the tub is too small for this pachyderm. Yogi tries to get inside the tub, with each attempt he realizes that the tub is too small to accommodate him fully. So, Yogi now dips his head first, and then he pulls out his head and puts in his front legs. When his front legs feel cool enough, he pulls them out and put in his hind legs for a quick splash. All afternoon Yogi plays this water game.