completely different! Tange, Zula and a caregiver

went for a little—but big—adventure last week.

There is a new road that goes practically straight

up and we all climbed it. Very unexpectedly, the

Girls did not come back to the barn for dinner,

so the Caregiver had to go out to look for them.

They were found down in the North Woods Valley.

We all met up with very excited greetings, but the

Caregiver had to get some distance away to give

the girls their food. The Caregiver went way up a

hill and stopped at the halfway spot, only to see

Tange still coming with great effort. So up, up some

more with Tange trudging upward. The Caregiver

went up faster to the top and called back down to

Tange who was still going strong. Needing to check

on Zula, the Caregiver walked back down, greeting

Tange, as she passed by, only to see Zula making

her way up this steep pathway as well. With many

shouts of encouragement in many strange voices,

the Caregiver and Zula made it to the top where

Tange greeted us once again with great trumpets,

rumbles & spinning. We were all tired but finally the

ground was flat and the Girls were excited to see all

the saplings & tall grasses. We made our way to a

quiet spot and dinner was served. The girls stayed

up there, along the Asian barn road, for a couple of

days, making new paths and leaving markers for the

next time they go adventuring.

down the North Road to visit some of the areas

down there. They spent most of two days in a

meadow that is full of reds, yellows, pink and

purples right now. It’s a beautiful spot that also

has fresh grasses that are not only good for grazing,

but make for very soft sleepy spots as well. Later

in the week they went further down the road to

Marcella’s Rd., one of the spots where Tarra routinely

can be found. This is somewhere new and different

for Sis and Winks, with lots of different trails to

explore and more new things to see and eat.

Dulary and Misty went a little ways down Lake Road

one night and ate dinner there. Once again, small

steps towards getting further away from the barn.

As for Shirley and Bunny—they spent most of the

week at the head of the lake in this pretty little

pasture being pretty mellow.

their entire temporary habitat in the Phase 1

facility. Early mornings have found Billie up the

hill in the wooded area south of the barn engaged

in foraging the undergrowth of tasty ground cover

vegetation. Thanks to her bi-weekly probiotic

supplements Frieda’s tummy is feeling much better.

She is spending only a limited amount of time

soaking her feet in the pond which indicates that

her feet are feeling better as well, and she is back

to drinking a normal volume of water daily—a huge

relief. Liz has created a private dust bowl with a

perfect slight slope for napping at the east end

of the yard. She can be found napping in the late

morning and usually in the afternoon. Frieda enjoys

spending time underneath a giant thorn tree which

provides shade and plenty of browse beneath. Billie

keeps a watchful eye on all, visiting with Frieda

under the tree and then joining Liz as she engages

in dusting. Each night, after the caregivers go home

and the lights are extinguished, a series of crashes,

bangs, thuds and thumps can be heard coming

from the Quarantine Barn. Billie, Liz and Frieda

adore the suspended toy in the barn which provides

Sanctuary Anniversary on Monday, September

29. We suspect that Shirley will be by Bunny’s

side for the big celebration!

hours of entertainment into the wee hours of the

morning, after which the Threesome could be heard

stampeding out of the barn, into their yard, full

of trumpets and chirps! Wednesday we heard much

trumpeting and squeaking and looked out, expecting

to see Carol or Scott going by on a four-wheeler�?/P>

but neither was in sight. We all agreed that it must

just be pure silliness and fun!

Lottie has been seen grazing without Minnie in

sight, but of course Minnie is never too far away.

Minnie has been very soft and calm for quite

some time; in fact, since Queenie passed. She will

cooperate by allowing caregivers to pass close by on

the 4-wheeler without moving. Once the 4-wheeler

is past her she will slowly turn and follow for her

meal.

Ron and Deb have been taking advantage of the

pond on these warm days. They submerge as one

giant body, and displace more water than seems

possible! All the Divas seem quite content.

The nighttime temperatures have dropped to a

comfortable coolness that appears to have cut down

on the relentless bugs and has brought comfort to

the girls.

recognition of the commitment, perseverance, and

milestones achieved by The Elephant Sanctuary in

Tennessee, the State of Tennessee, Lewis County and

the City of Hohenwald have declared October 2008

as Elephant Awareness Month. A proclamation signed

City and County Proclamations will be presented

and signed Monday, September 29, by City Mayor

Don Jones and County Mayor Kenneth Turnbow to

Sanctuary Co-Founders Carol Buckley and Scott Blais.

http://www.elephants.com/elebuzz/elebuzz_9-22-08c.pdf