Veterinarian reaffirms his relationship with wild elephant he had cured years ago
A veterinarian clarified recently that his relationship with a wild elephant – posted on his Facebook last week – was a true story, after experts suggested that the elephant in his photo was likely a pet, not a wild one as he had claimed.
On March 13, the Department of National Parks, Wildlife and Plant Conservation veterinarian Pattarapol Maneeon posted on his social media an account of his reunion with the first wild elephant he had cured.
The veterinarian said that he had met the elephant 12 years ago, when it suffered from trypanosomiasis.
Pattarapol said the elephant was smart, and it took a long time before allowing him to approach it and begin the treatment.
He added that the last time he found the animal, it was still able to remember him.
Later, a newspaper said that the story was questioned by wild elephant experts, as important information, such as the date or place of reunion, had not been mentioned in the post.
The report cited expert opinion that a rope collar was seen on the animal’s neck, suggesting that it was a pet elephant.
In response to experts’ suspicions, Pattarapol explained that the elephant in his photo was really a wild elephant called “Phrai Tang”. And the photo was taken three weeks ago.
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