All Six Elephants at Dinner

Female Asian elephants Baby and Guille trunk wrestle by the yard gate

It was dinner time in the Female Asian Habitat and all six elephants were scattered throughout the yards. Baby was in one of the yards near the barn and Guille, Maia, and Bambi were just emerging from the woods in Yard 5. All four elephants could see each other across the neighboring fence line. Bambi still seemed a little insecure about Baby’s energy and stood at a distance with her ears out, listening. Guille was nearest to Baby and headed her way when Mara and Rana slowly strolled down the pathway toward the group, positioning themselves at “the square,” which is a point where the gates to the yards all meet.

We put everyone’s food down relatively close to the fence and fed Baby on her side of the gate. Guille ate close to Baby, but on the other side. Maia and Bambi joined them a ways down the fence line. Maia walked over with no hesitation, but Bambi (who at this point appeared more focused on Mara thanBaby) needed a few extra meters of space before she felt comfortable standing alongside the others. She settled in and calmly ate fairly near Baby, showing little concern. Rana and Mara decided to go their own way shortly after eating, and Maia and Bambi gave Guille the chance to interact with Baby, just the two of them. Their interactions can still be tentative sometimes, but we’re seeing their personalities emerge around each other as they become more at ease.

Photo of Baby (left) and Guille (right) trunk wrestling at the gate

Comments(11)

Diane S. says
September 15, 2026 at 2:04 pm

I think it’s so smart that you are introducing them gradually, allowing them to move at a pace with which they’re comfortable. It’s very exciting nonetheless, and I believe it’s the beginning of a beautiful bond that will ultimately form between them 🐘💚🩵
Ada says
September 15, 2026 at 2:14 pm

Oh my! This is adorable! These two will lost likely be the new bff’s. Baby girl is slowly being welcomed by her new ele family and she in return is also welcoming them in her life💗🥰
Lori Hoover says
September 15, 2026 at 2:36 pm

Adorable!! I love the older girls Maia and Bambi giving Guille the time to visit with Baby at the end, LOL Also, I wondered, did you mean Bambi was concerned about Mara’s presence a little bit?
- REPLY
  Kat Blais says
  September 15, 2026 at 2:42 pm
  
  i read it and didn’t see where the question came from. yes, bambi still shows more concern about Mara than she does about Baby. we’re going a little extra slow with bambi, because of her vision loss, since baby is the first elephant she will ‘meet’ without being able to see. and baby is speedy. so we’re being very attentive to her comfort level. in a way, it’s nice to see she is more relaxed around baby, but also a little sad to see that bambi’s relationship with mara still seems very fractured.
Beci says
September 15, 2026 at 2:37 pm

Is that trunk wrestling playful or is it trying to fight? If it’s playful that’s fantastic and it’s so good to see them all getting closer. I can’t wait till she gets to be with them. Thank you guys for everything you do.
- REPLY
  Kat Blais says
  September 15, 2026 at 2:40 pm
  
  it’s a playful way of testing dominance a little bit, but definitely not fighting. they both allow each other to be on top, which is very positive. we’ve worked with elephants in the past that would still trunk wrestle 10 years after being together. some elephants just enjoy it.
Karen L. Hilliard says
September 15, 2026 at 2:37 pm

Now that we have Baby pretty well tucked in, we can turn some, not all our attention to our new guy Sando. I’m excited for him, and I wonder will the girls act differently with a new man in town, will they realize they’ve got a male in the sanctuary?
- REPLY
  Kat Blais says
  September 15, 2026 at 2:39 pm
  
  they should definitely be able to smell the difference. thankfully, in a way, he is mid 50s so the attention will be more benign than it could be if he was younger.
Sherry says
September 15, 2026 at 3:17 pm

I hear the dinner bell!! Enjoy!!
Heidi L Bailey says
September 15, 2026 at 4:14 pm

They look so cute trunk wrestling!!!!
johnny says
September 15, 2026 at 6:27 pm

Wonderful to see!

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