Themba the elephant, Famous orphan elephant dies
Matthew Kruk
Famous orphan elephant dies suddenly
2010/02/10
Luyolo Mkentane HERALD REPORTER mken...@avusa.co.za
THE sudden death of a world famous little elephant has left staff
feeling bereft at the Shamwari Game Reserve near Paterson in the Eastern
Cape.
Themba the elephant, who has appeared on DStv's Animal Planet, received
global media coverage on the special bond he formed with his companion,
Albert the sheep.
They met two years ago when Themba was brought to Shamwari to be raised
when he was orphaned at the age of six months.
Themba's mother died after falling down a cliff at Sanbona Wildlife
Reserve in the Little Karoo. Themba was then rescued by the Mantis
Conservation team who nursed him at their rehabilitation centre at
Shamwari.
Aged 2� years, Themba's death on Friday was the result of "a massive
torsion of the large intestine".
Mantis Collection public relations officer Veronique von Rehbinder said
the death had come at a time when the next couple of weeks were set to
be an exciting journey in the life of Themba.
She said when Themba arrived at Shamwari, he needed "24-hour comfort and
companionship".
Albert, a merino sheep, was donated by a neighbouring farmer to keep
Themba company. But Von Rehbinder said the ultimate objective had been
to reintroduce Themba back into the wild.
According to Von Rehbinder, the wildlife team had started with the
separation process of Themba and Albert.
Themba and Albert were separated through a fence, allowing Themba to
associate with other wildlife species. He was also exposed to "fresh
elephant droppings" to familiarise himself to members of his own
species, she said.
While they were busy preparing for Themba's release into the wild,
Themba's keepers noticed he was reacting strangely. This was reported to
Shamwari's resident veterinarian, Dr Johan Joubert.
On examination, Themba showed signs of "severe colic", said Von
Rehbinder, adding that initial treatment was ineffective, although his
condition later improved on Thursday last week.
"Unfortunately later that night, despite intensive treatment, Themba
went into a coma and sadly died on Friday morning."
She said this came as a "huge shock" to all of them, adding those close
to Themba were "devastated".
Joubert, who was in the Middle East when Themba died, said the elephant
was only six months old when he met him.
The staff at Shamwari had to wait for Joubert to return before releasing
a press statement, because he had to perform a post-mortem on Themba.
The post-mortem revealed a massive torsion of the large intestine. This
was not a common condition in elephants, according to Von Rehbinder, who
added that the condition was "almost impossible" to treat surgically due
to an elephant's anatomy and size.
Joubert said they had buried Themba at Shamwari "close to where he
lived", adding this was "a sad experience for all of us. We were keen
to release him into the wild".