Elephants World, a sanctuary for elephants who have had hard lives, has another type of resident that they are helping – a disabled dog named Hugo.

Sanctuary Educates Visitors

This unique sanctuary in Thailand offers respite for sick, old, abused, and retired or rescued elephants. Elephants World also offers visitors the opportunity to learn about elephants firsthand, interacting with the gentle giants in an eco-tourism environment. People interested in visiting with the elephants and taking part in their daily activities and care come from all over the world.

The motto at Elephants World is:

“We work for the elephants, the elephants do not work for us!”

The sanctuary was founded in 2008 and is run by veterinarian Dr. Samart and his wife Khun Fon. The Thai elephant population has decreased very significantly since the 1990s. Shortly after the Thai government banned logging in the country. Prior to that, elephants were key workers in the logging industry, but deforestation and major floods led to the government ban.

While the ban made environmental sense, elephants were essentially out of a job. But they still needed to be fed and cared for. Dr. Samart initially founded Elephants World to help a few local elephants in need, but it has grown! To date, it has helped 30 elephants.

Disabled Dog Tugs at Heart

Hugo was a stray dog who was fortunate to be taken in at Elephants World. He was not disabled when he was taken in at the sanctuary. However, he became partially paralyzed by a blood parasite last year.

Since then, the disabled six-year-old Thai Ridgeback mix would follow around many of the sanctuary volunteers, dragging his rear legs behind him.

Volunteer Siddhika Sreenivasan said,

“He captured my heart with his cute smile and floppy ears. He was following us around to all our activities and unfortunately, he would have to drag his back two legs to accompany us. Plus, he couldn’t go far!”

Siddhika was moved to look into getting a Walkin’ Wheels dog wheelchair for Hugo. The wheelchair was shipped to Thailand, and once it arrived, Hugo began using it daily.

Now the volunteers who come from all over the world to see the elephants also get to be educated by this friendly dog who uses wheels for rear legs. Hugo gets to show the world that disabled dogs are capable of living happy, active lives, just like any other dog!

Visit Elephants World website to learn more about their work, see photos, and book a visit!