Mother\'s Love for Elephants

Rosa Rika Wahyuni is worried that habitat destruction, poaching and the illegal trade in protected animals will lead to the extinction of Sumatran elephants.

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Rosa Rika Wahyuni

The love Rosa Rika Wahyuni (38) has for the world of conservation and Sumatran elephants has grown since her university days. That love grew even greater when she became a veterinarian at the Aceh Natural Resources Conservation Center. She hasn’t counted how many animals she has taken care of.

"To care for animals, we have to be in touch with our feelings and instincts because they can\'t speak. We are the ones trying to understand what they are feeling,” Rosa Rika Wahyuni said on Wednesday (17/2/2021) as she looked after Inong, a Sumatran elephant calf (Elephas maximus sumatranus), at the Saree Elephant Conservation Center (PKG) in Aceh Besar regency.

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Inong is a 1-month-old elephant found trapped in a puddle in the jungle of Pidie regency. The poorly elephant is in critical condition and being treated at the Saree Elephant Conservation Center. Rosa and other members of the veterinary team are caring for the elephant with great affection.

"I think the calf is thirsty, let me prepare some milk first," said Rosa.

She opened the elephant\'s mouth with her hand and inserted an infusion tube filled with formula milk. "He\'s not good at drinking from a milk bottle, so he has to use an IV tube," she said.

Also read: Erin’s Tale, a Cruel Portrait of Elephant-Poaching

Rosa’s face had a sad expression as she looked at the condition of the small elephant. A week of stuck in the mud had left the elephant with blindness, facial injuries and his legs paralyzed. Rosa stroked Inong\'s face. He responded when she stroked his ears by flapping them.

We did our best. His health deteriorated and in the end, Inong died.

"When he was brought here, [his] left ear was unresponsive. Now [he can move it],” she added.

Inong’s condition improved, but the elephant calf died on Wednesday (3/3). Rosa could not hide her grief. "We did our best. His health deteriorated and in the end, Inong died," she said.

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Rosa Rika Wahyuni while caring for elephants at the Gajah Saree Conservation Center

For love

Rosa had dreamed of becoming a nurse since she was a teenager. So she decided to go to a vocational senior high school, the Indonesian Nursing School. After graduating, she continued her studies at the veterinary school at Syiah Kuala University in Banda Aceh.

At university, Rosa became active with the Nature Lovers Student Organization (Mapala) in Leuser. She often spent time doing activities in the forest. She learned a lot about conservation,

including protected species. It was from this experience that her love for the environment and wild animals began to bloom in her heart. Rosa also completed field work as an intern at the Aceh Natural Resources Conservation Center (BKSDA Aceh).

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In 2010, Rosa became a veterinarian at BKSDA Aceh. She was very happy because she could return to the forest and interact with the wildlife. The center’s area of work spans one province and 23 regencies and cities. Rosa must be ready to go into the field wherever she is assigned to. The locations she went to were untouched wilderness.

Sometimes she was given a field assignment in the middle of the night. Without a thought, she grabs her backpack and heads out onto the field. The increasing frequency of human-animal conflicts means that Rosa is more frequently in the field.

Also read: Protecting the Environment through Honey Bees

“I am fortunate to have a very understanding husband. My husband fully supports my work. When I go into the field, he takes care of the house and looks after the children,” said Rosa.

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Sumatran elephant calves undergo treatment at the Aceh Besar Saree Elephant Conservation Center, Aceh, Wednesday (17/2/2021). The elephant was found critical because it was trapped in mud in Pidie.

In order to support Rosa\'s profession, her husband decided to quit his job at an oil and gas company in Riau to become a farmer. In fact, her husband makes a much higher salary than Rosa, who remains a non-permanent contract employee until now.

Rosa has immense love for the Sumatran elephant. She once worked while she was pregnant. Rosa applied for maternity leave only a week before she was to give birth. Rosa felt strong despite her pregnancy. She helped rescue bears in Bener Meriah regency and performed a necropsy on the body of a dead elephant in Central Aceh regency. Her love for protected animals gives her strength.

Also read: Women’s Model for Environmental Conservation

As a veterinarian at PKG Saree, Rosa has been tasked with caring for a baby elephant, treating a sick wild elephant and performing necropsies on elephant carcasses to determine the cause of death. She also treats other wildlife.

When I care for baby elephants, I feel like I am their mother

However, it is not uncommon for Rosa to get lost in her feelings while tending to the elephants. Because of her great compassion for the animals, she becomes overwhelmed with grief when an elephant dies under her care, especially if she had been caring for the elephant since it was a baby. She feels like she has lost a child.

"When I care for baby elephants, I feel like I am their mother," said Rosa.

Inong\'s death has added to Rosa’s grief. Other calves that Rosa has treated and then died include Salma, Rosa and Agam. Wild elephant calves that are rescued and treated have relatively little chance of survival. This is because the calves need to be breastfed by their mother. Formula milk does not fulfill their nutritional needs.

Elephants also become easily stressed, which weakens their immune system. Eventually, the calf falls ill. In addition, nothing can replace the touch and protection of a mother.

Also read: Ari Hidayat, Protector of Wildlife

Human-elephant conflicts are widespread across Aceh, and has resulted in a high fatality rate for the animals. Data from the BKSDA Aceh show that 42 elephants had died between 2016 and 2020. The causes of death are 57 percent human-elephant conflict, 33 percent natural causes and 10 percent poaching. It is estimated that remaining elephant population in Aceh numbers 539, with the population spread across 15 regencies and cities.

Rosa is worried that habitat destruction, poaching and the illegal trade in protected animals will lead to the extinction of Sumatran elephants. She calls on all parties to contribute to the protection of Sumatran elephants, which exist only in Indonesia.

Rosa Rika Wahyuni

Born: Aceh Besar, 22 Jan. 1983

Husband: Zaharuddin

Education: Veterinary Medicine Faculty, Syiah Kuala University, Banda Aceh

Awards: An award from the Environment and Forestry Ministry; an award from the Director General of Natural Resources and Ecosystem Conservation

This article was translated by Kurniawan H. Siswoko.