April, 2018 Visit to Pelusa: Part III From Suz, at the La Plata Zoo in Argentina, with Pelusa—
“Kat asked me to start doing regular social media posts for you all, so I wanted to start with first impressions – I came into this having seen many of the same photos that you have, so I knew about her feet, her skinniness, her story. I was a little worried – prior to this, I had only ever worked with elephants at a sanctuary and never with an elephant Before Sanctuary.
Kat kept reassuring me that once I saw her it would be easier, that her spirit was strong. I was still skeptical and a little nervous, she is so skinny; and her feet are so bad. Pictures tell their own truth, a hard truth.
But I want to tell you all that, being here is easy – she makes it easy. She makes it easy to forget about her feet; about her skinniness. She’s all ears flapping, trunk inquisitive. Her personality and sweetness shine much larger than her physical body; and project well beyond her skinny frame.
She has a platform in the front corner of the barn that’s about 6-12″ tall. She likes to stand partially on it and lean over the bars – making her even taller – as if even she knows that she is larger than life and also wants her physical self to catch up to her spirit.
If I had to sum up my first impression – a week in – I would just have to say the word Perfect, with a little heart eyed-smiley-face-emoji for good measure. Her body is not perfect, but her spirit and heart are. She is so perfect and I am so grateful to be here to help her along into the next stage in her journey, whatever that may mean.”
For those who may not know, we worked with Suz in TN and thought about her with our last visit with Pelusa. She seemed a perfect fit for Pelusa and when the zoo agreed to have us send a caregiver to help care for Pelusa, somehow it ended up a done deal. Suz will be with Pelusa for a couple of months, hopefully long enough for her permits to go through and come to sanctuary.
April, 2018 Visit to Pelusa Series:
Part I Where To Start
Part II Developing A Plan
Part III Thoughts From Her New Caregiver Suz
Part IV What Pelusa Needs And How You Can Help Give It To Her
Part V This Is Pelusa
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