Sydney’s Taronga Zoo has five adult elephants brought from Thailand in November 2006. The animals were sourced from tourist and work camps.
The move was generated controversy and local activists delayed the project for a considerable time. Since then the elephants seem to have settled in well and produced the first elephant calf born in Australia in July last year.
I imagine it’s hard performing certain procedures, like an ultrasound, on an animal so large. I remember a veterinarian instructor I had in Vet. Tech. school once told us how they had to wear full hazmat gear and climb inside a dead elephant in order to do a necropsy* (autopsy). So I’m guessing a c-section would be impossible.
*It died of tuberculosis.
By the way, this should probably be in MPSIMS, I don’t see the opinion here.
One of my Thai coworkers was named Kittiporn. I’m sure in Thailand it didn’t cause any snickers - but for the group of guys I worked with in the states it was like it was seventh grade.
Correct. Pronounced like the English word “pawn.” Still possible to get the giggles when you meet a girl with the not-uncommon name of Supaporn (which although sounds differently, sounds very close to “super porn.”) Anything with “Porn” – on its own or connected to another sylable or syllables – seems to be mostly a girl’s name, although I have encountered at least one man with the name of … wait for it … Pornrat.
My favorite Thai name has to be Therdsak (sounds close to “turd sack”). In fact, I know a fellow American who, as general manager of a local company, joked that he had wanted to hire an applicant named that one time, just so he could have someone around he could call Turd. Alas! Therdsak’s qualifications were not up to snuff.
Oh, and glad about the elephant. I once saw a VERY pregnant elephant walking down the street here with its mahout (handler). She looked like she had swallowed a VW bus!
