My name is Sudarat and am the boss of Samui Elephant Haven. I’m 45 years old and have had a long and tiring life already; in fact, it has been exhausting. I hobble around like a little old lady because I have a knee injury, hence my nickname Nanny!
My story starts when I was a logging elephant based in the north of Thailand close to Chiang Mai. Later, I moved to Pattaya, where I carried tourists on my back for up to 60 trips a day walking on hot concrete. The chair we carried weighed 500kg. During my time logging in Pattaya, I was forced to sleep standing up; there were too many rocks and stones to make a comfortable bed for me. I weigh four tonnes and would find it very hard to get up in the morning.
I am one of two cantankerous ladies who look after our herd: the other is known as Grandma. I pretend that I don’t like her, but I do have a secret soft spot for her. I adore the fact that we look after the growing number of babies that are being rescued and added to the herd.
You’ll notice when you are here, that I will stand at the side of the pool keeping a watchful eye over the babies playing in the water. I’ll run to them if they trumpet and bang my truck on the ground if I get worried about them; I am very protective. When the babies get out of the water and cover themselves in mud, I like to play with my hanging tyre! Maew kindly orders soft sand and makes a comfortable bank for me so that I can now sleep lying down
