Lady has a pretty set morning treatment routine. At this point, it’s more in-depth than that of our other elephants. Aside from her pre-existing health issues, she is still new to target training, and it has been incorporated into her treatment routine as well.
Since Lady’s arrival, her routine has evolved as we (humans and Lady both) have figured out what works best and her increased trust allows us to move forward. In the mornings, as soon as Lady finishes her breakfast, we start with a short training session. It works best to do this first because that is when she is still the most food motivated. We focus on the basics, including leaning in and lifting her feet. After target training, we move onto foot soaks. Once we open up the chute with the jacuzzi, she immediately walks through and steps into the tub without us asking.
Although Lady receives treats during foot soaks, her excitement makes us think she enjoys the soaks themselves or associates them with feeling better. She doesn’t usually play in the water during her foot soak sessions anymore (she did in the beginning), although she still occasionally decides an apple cider vinegar spritz is needed. Once we let her know the soaks are over (they last about 15-20 minutes), she will sometimes play in the water before exiting the jacuzzi, or sometimes she’ll step right out.
Next up is her daily bath, and – you guessed it – more treats! We touch, scrub, and manipulate parts of her body (such as her tail) during bath time. As we have mentioned in previous posts, this is to get her used to human touch. This way, if any medical need were to arise anywhere on her body, she would already be somewhat comfortable with us touching the area. We also check her for any bug bites, scrapes or other abnormalities during this time.
As we get set for the next step, Lady gets a brief break in everything before treating her old abscess (located on her face). That involves flushing it with an antibacterial wash and applying light pressure to it to expel any pus. We then use an antibacterial/antifungal spray on the area. Treating her abscess is probably not the favorite part of her day, but it’s medically necessary. And when she is a ‘perfect princess’ she gets one of her favorites, handfuls of dried cranberries. Next, we apply topical treatments to her feet, spray her down with homemade essential oil bug spray, and open up the chute. She meanders out and goes on about her day.
It’s a lot, but we work quickly and efficiently. The entire process usually takes about 45 minutes, start to finish. She seems to enjoy it overall.
Photo is Lady happy happy being wet.
Comments(17) 
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Barb says
February 23, 2020 at 3:42 pmLady looks so cute wet! She DOES have a busy morning schedule. Wish we could see a little bit of the action sometime. Hint ??❤️
EleComposer says
February 24, 2020 at 9:52 amWhen she is in the chute or receiving any treatment/training, she doesn’t really like cameras/phones/her humans being distracted. Even if we are just using the timer on the phone to time her foot soaks, her energy shifts (we have the timer 30-40 feet away with a third person monitoring it to avoid this). Unless that changes, we won’t be doing any photos or videos of her morning routine. It’s a very strange thing, and something we don’t see in the other elephants, but it’s pretty easy to respect it and stay 100% focused on her during her time.
Kelejan says
February 24, 2020 at 10:46 amI love the way you respect every elephant as an individual and cater to her every request and need in her own time.
Carol says
February 23, 2020 at 4:18 pmSo fabulous! The girls actually have spa treatments every morning!!!
JoAnn Merriman Eaton says
February 23, 2020 at 4:50 pmOnce again, thank you for this insight to what works for Lady. I would love to see the progress on her feet. Any possibility is seeing a close up of her feet now as compared to when she arrived?
Julie says
February 23, 2020 at 5:42 pmIt sounds like every human hand on the property must be busy with the work at hand, but yeah, a video would be quite interesting if at all possible.. ?
EleComposer says
February 24, 2020 at 9:53 amWhen she is in the chute or receiving any treatment/training, she doesn’t really like cameras/phones/her humans being distracted. Even if we are just using the timer on the phone to time her foot soaks, her energy shifts (we have the timer 30-40 feet away with a third person monitoring it to avoid this). Unless that changes, we won’t be doing any photos or videos of her morning routine. It’s a very strange thing, and something we don’t see in the other elephants, but it’s pretty easy to respect it and stay 100% focused on her during her time.
Kelejan says
February 23, 2020 at 6:16 pmI would blossom too under that loving treatment.
CyrAnn says
February 23, 2020 at 6:51 pmLooking at this picture of Lady Bug shows me that she’s blossoming into a confident happy girl ❤️?
Patricia says
February 23, 2020 at 9:27 pmMy heart sings! Thank you! Hugs and kisses to all, especially that adorable and smart girl, Lady. ???
SHEILA says
February 23, 2020 at 10:36 pmbravo lil lady‼️‼️ yes dear lady was never treated for any ailments, very sadly!? so nice mz lady is enjoying her foot soaks!! ill bet feet feel better as it seems she is not puddling in the bath water! i hope u r able to see success in her feet and will soon be able to trim her nails and pads! i hope infection is coming out of that right front foot‼️thank u for all u do for sweet lady! inhope she is sweet and nice to u folks too during her treatments?so will lady get to be in with rana today?in one of the yards?insure hope so!
Rosie P says
February 24, 2020 at 3:16 amWell, I think I shall grow a trunk and ask for rescue!!! LOL! Lady is certainly getting the 5 star treatment and it’s so good to know how much she loves all the pampering…even if she does have to have her abscess cleaned at the end. She is remarkable given all she has been through in her long life. She is home now and she knows it!
Bless you, sweet darling and bless all of you who care for her and the other girls.
BTW, got my gorgeous “Ramba Effect” tops yesterday. Love, love , love them. Let’s get the message out there!
Carey says
February 24, 2020 at 7:29 amAmazing, I think she likes her treatments, except as you say – her face abscess, will this abscess always be there? Very well done to all!
EleComposer says
February 24, 2020 at 9:50 amIt is improving. Abscesses like this take a long time to heal, even if they are mild and quickly receive treatment.
Unfortunately, she has had this one for years. It festered for years without any treatment, so, it is going to take a very long time to heal now that it is receiving treatment.
Sherry says
February 24, 2020 at 9:11 amYes, this is the way all animals should be treated! What a wonderful world this would be.
Rosie P says
February 24, 2020 at 9:57 amIt certainly would, Sherry.
Nancy Jordan says
February 25, 2020 at 4:25 pmI can’t wait for the blogs to come out telling us how mz Lady is getting on. She is responding so well to your love and care. The way Lady loves any water so much is so cute and I’m guessing she didn’t get any water to mess about with where she was held captive. God bless you all for your work and devotion to all the elephants
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Lady’s Morning Treatment Routine