Pattaya garden trumpets arrival of twin baby elephants

Pattaya’s Nong Nooch Tropical Garden celebrated the arrival of twin baby elephants with an elaborate ceremony yesterday.

Kampol Tansajja, President of Nong Nooch Tropical Garden, and his management team led the event. They invited Phra Kru Silasarathikhun, Abbot of Khao Khanthamat Temple, and Phra Kru Kasem Kittisophon, Abbot of Samakkhi Banphot Temple, to oversee the proceedings within the sprawling 200-rai garden.

The ceremony began with a vibrant procession featuring graceful dancers and over 30 elephants, warmly welcoming the new calves, Plai Mitthuna and Pang Nong Joon. The abbots adorned the elephants with flowery garlands and marked their foreheads with white powder as part of the religious blessings.

Both Plai Mitthuna and Pang Nong Joon were born on the same day in June. They are reported to be in excellent health and are under the diligent care of the sanctuary’s specialised elephant keepers.

Nong Nooch Tropical Garden is currently home to 77 elephants. Pattaya News states it is the first elephant sanctuary in Thailand to receive certification for good practices from the Thai Department of Livestock and the National Bureau of Agricultural Commodity and Food Standards.

In related news, Nong Nooch Tropical Garden celebrated the arrival of a new elephant calf to its sanctuary. The garden’s president, Kampol Tansajja, and his team invited Phra Khru Kasem Kittisophon, Abbot of Wat Samakkhibanpot, to lead a welcoming ceremony for the newborn.

In other news, in a heart-wrenching tale of suffering and salvation, a baby elephant named Tofu, just eight months old, has been plucked from a life of torment in Laos and given a fresh start. Chained and mistreated, his plight symbolises the ongoing battle against exploitation in the tourism industry across Asia.

Planting Peace, a stalwart organisation dedicated to the rehabilitation of captive elephants, stumbled upon Tofu tethered to a post, his eyes pleading for liberation.