Elephant found with trunk cut in Malayattoor forest division

Kochi: A team of veterinary surgeons and forest officials is trying to tranquilise and treat a cow elephant which was found the tail end of its trunk cut on Thursday near Mamalakkandam tribal area in Malayattoor forest division.

Forest officials who reached the spot on Thursday after the residents informed them on Wednesday night that they spotted an elephant in the area found its truck cut by almost a feet.

However, the veterinarians’ team, led by Dr Jaya Kumar, found the position of the elephant in the forest area not conducive for firing a tranquiliser shot.

“The elephant is moving to the forest area and back to a compound and hence the officials are finding it hard to tranquilise it,” Malayattoor divisional forest officer T S Mathew said.

The forest department is taking all steps to provide medical attention to the elephant, he said.  

Mr Mathew said there are several possibilities as to how the elephant could have sustained the injury.

“Chances of a direct human attack are less as the elephants normally move as a group,” he said.

“And poachers generally avoid targeting cow elephants.” Other forest officials said the elephant could have sustained the injury while trying to eat reeds.

A local resident told Deccan Chronicle that there are lot of tree houses in the region and its quite common for the people living in them to inflict injuries on animals if they try to attack.