Good news! Baby Tec Gaj was released from chains.

Unfortunately, it is not all good news because his mother, Puja Kali, was not.

Two-year-old, captive-born Tec Gaj and his mother Puja Kali reside in Khorsor, ‪Nepal, at the government breeding center.

Puja Kali is quite aggressive, known to attack her mahouts even while she is on chains.

Such aggression is an indication of great suffering, usually on a mental and emotional level.

Responding to Puja Kali’s aggression with corporal punishment compounds her condition but mahouts find themselves with few alternatives.

Aggressive behavior exhibited by ‪elephants triggers retaliatory aggressive behavior by the mahouts. Aggression breeds aggression, resulting in a vicious cycle in which neither man nor elephant benefits.

EAI does not endorse the use of any negative means to manage elephants and we empathize with the position the mahouts and captive-held elephants find themselves in.

Hopefully, with our continued efforts, the day will come when aggressive elephants will no longer be used for activities that put them and their mahouts in danger. And, mahouts will learn alternative ways to care for their elephants.