The calf was brought to MTR on 16 March and raised under the care of Bomman and Bellie, the couple featured in the Oscars winning documentary The Elephant Whisperers as concerted efforts to reunite the animal with a herd failed. The calf, which strayed out of the forest, had slipped into a well in a private farm near Pennagaram in Dharmapuri.

“The elephant calf, which was fed with lactogen milk, suffered from indigestion due to insufficient secretion of the enzyme lactose. Having survived a fall into a well and being away from its natural habitat and mother caused severe stress in the animal resulting in insufficient secretion of enzyme lactose. A post mortem has also revealed some pneumonic changes in its lungs due to excess consumption of water during its fall into the well,” said a veterinarian.

The elephant died of sudden complications as it appeared healthy and playful till Thursday morning. “As it suffered from diarrhea, the calf was given intravenous fluids to recover from dehydration. It was also given medicines, but the elephant calf failed to get well and died at around Friday, 1am,” he added.

It is nothing unusual for an elephant calf to die due to such health complications and earlier too similar deaths have happened among rescued elephants due to enteritis, the official said. A post mortem has been completed and samples were sent for further laboratory analysis.