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Rana and Ramba continue to play games of trunk tag without touching, but it’s ridiculously charming. Mostly because of the sweet faces they are making throughout. Rana is so excited to be close but is being really respectful of not pushing things. Ramba is putting herself in vulnerable positions, like in this video, which shows she is playing an active role in all of this, although she is still reluctant to touch. Ramba is the one who walked behind Rana to squeeze into the little space she is standing. They did have some tail touching and some belly touching during this interaction, but not trunk touching. Ramba is also rumbling back to Rana (who has been almost endlessly rumbling when they interact) and making cheeky grinning faces when she does it. Honestly, it’s ridiculous how cute they are together.

One of the blessings with this trip has been having Ramba’s caregivers from Chile here. We know sanctuary transforms elephants almost immediately, even when the healing journey is long. And her caregivers know this, but it’s different when you see it. Especially with an elephant you have a relationship with. They are amazed at how different she is already, her face, her spirit, her attitude, it has all already morphed. We were laughing because Ramba almost always goes inside when it rains in Chile and doesn’t come out of the barn. Here she has been standing in the middle of storms, sometimes napping, other times dusting or playing in the mud wallow. Her caregivers are even excited about how much better her dung looks. Just a few days and already so many changes.

Maia is still close but hasn’t come back to the barn. The gates are open for her to return, but she seems content wandering on her own. Yesterday we saw her smelling in the direction of the barn, so she is definitely aware, but hasn’t chosen to be part of things yet. This is her choice and it’s ok. She will come when she is ready. She won’t have access directly in with Rana and Ramba, but will be in a connected yard with a shared fence line. Since Ramba isn’t completely comfortable with one elephant yet, we don’t want to add another one to the mix without knowing that Ramba is ready.

There are a lot of happy hearts here at Elephant Sanctuary Brazil. Physically, Ramba already looks better than we could have imagined. She looks much stronger than she did when Scott arrived in Chile. Her energy is much better, she holds her head higher, and her emotional facial expressions are to die for. We haven’t seen this in her ever. She still has a ton of growth ahead of her, but the improvement in just a few days is simply stunning. Rescues always end up being a reminder of just how remarkable elephants are and Ramba is no exception.

PS- we have no power, so no internet at the barn. It has been like that all day, we are hoping tomorrow will be different and we can try some more live feeds.

PPS- the girls are actually just outside of the barn. They’re not closed in together and walked away to explore shortly after that. 

October 21, 2019

Read More on Their Pages:

• Ramba’s Rescue Page →
• Rana’s Page →
• Maia’s Page →