Pupy Finds the Mud Wallow

April 24, 2025

Many of you have been asking if Pupy had been cooling off in the mud wallow and, until now, she hadn’t ventured in. She had walked near it but hadn’t actually put her feet in or splashed herself. You can see that that has now changed. Around dinner time, we went to look for her to show her where we were putting her food and found her here, spraying herself with mud. It’s obvious from looking at her that she’s really relaxed and enjoying herself.

However, if you watch her carefully, you can see that her trunk is very weak. She doesn’t seem to have a problem splashing herself, but really only pushes the mud around. We are hoping that with time it will strengthen but we can’t say for sure, since we don’t know the root cause of this long-term issue. Still, Pupy is experiencing a lot of firsts these days, and this was one that we were thrilled to see.

Comments(15)

REPLY
Cintia says
April 24, 2025 at 10:24 am

Ay que Hermosa! She is also getting a mani/pedi 😊
Hopefully she will get some strength in her trunk with all different uses she will be doing with her trunk.
REPLY
Lori Hoover says
April 24, 2025 at 11:00 am

Seeing the title of this post in my email made me exclaim out loud. I am so happy for her. It is such a joy to see her discover the things around her and herself. I am hoping that time and different usage will help with Pupy’s trunk strength. I’ve noticed that weakness in her (only because you’ve mentioned it before) from time to time, too. Go Pupy Go!!
REPLY
Jennifer Davis says
April 24, 2025 at 12:24 pm

Do you think her trunk will strengthen over time like a muscle? She really wasn’t using it much before. She really loves kicking up the mud! Thank you for sharing her with us ❤️
- REPLY
  Sara says
  April 24, 2025 at 12:53 pm
  
  That’s our hope, though we will know more with time.
  - Tammy says
    April 26, 2025 at 12:45 pm
    
    Oh joy to the world Pupy is enjoying that mud wallow which I believe will help her skin tremendously! It’s funny how these little things mean so much to once captive elephants! Enjoy pretty girl you sure do deserve it, love and hugs
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Beji says
April 24, 2025 at 12:27 pm

I love, love, love!!! this girl!!!
REPLY
Carol Goldstein O’Connell says
April 24, 2025 at 1:21 pm

I have been noticing that when she tosses the dirt on herself, she doesn’t throw it over her head onto her back…she kind of does it on her sides. Praying she gains more trunk strength in time.
- REPLY
  Sara says
  April 24, 2025 at 2:16 pm
  
  It’s hard to know if that’s because of her trunk weakness. That could just be her preference. We’ll know in time.
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Johnny says
April 24, 2025 at 2:42 pm

Thanks Elephant Sanctuary Brazil, for these uplifting videos. Beauty in a world that needs much, much more of this.
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Nelson Courser says
April 24, 2025 at 4:35 pm

GREAT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
REPLY
Audrey says
April 24, 2025 at 9:51 pm

Pupy is truly looking amazing. When she first arrived, she looked thin & lost, but now she’s coming out of her shell & starting to realize this is now my home..
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Maureen says
April 26, 2025 at 5:39 am

Such a beautiful, beautiful girl! Love that she is covering herself in mud. Can’t wait to see her become a pond blob!
- REPLY
  Tammy says
  April 26, 2025 at 12:47 pm
  
  LOL me too!
  - Jennifer Davis says
    April 26, 2025 at 3:39 pm
    
    How old is Pupy? She is such a rock star!
  - Kat Blais says
    April 26, 2025 at 3:43 pm
    
    she is 35 years old. you can learn more about her on her page https://globalelephants.org/pupy/

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