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Moola Asian Elephant Cow at Dickerson Park Zoo
Meet Moola, one of the Asian elephant cows at Dickerson Park Zoo Springfield, Missouri. Learn about how she has been a successful part of the Asian elephant breeding program at Dickerson Park Zoo. Moola was born in Burma which is now called Myanmar in 1981. Moola came to Dickerson Park Zoo on February 20, 1994. Moola has participated in the Asian Elephant Breeding Program at Dickerson park Zoo very successfully. She has had two beautiful elephant calves while at Dickerson Park Zoo. Moola gave birth to Chandra on July 2, 1996. Chandra was greeted and loved by all of Springfield Zoo visitors. In 1997 Chandra she made history while at Dickerson Park Zoo. She developed symptoms of the elephant herpesvirus. Chandra was very ill. All of Springfield was concerned. The staff at Dickerson Park Zoo worked very diligently caring for Chandra creating ways to save the little elephant's life. Chandra became the FIRST elephant to be successfully treated for the elephant herpesvirus!! HURRAY for Chandra and our hats off to the knowledgeable caring staff at Dickerson Park Zoo who took such loving care of her. Chandra can now be visited at the Oklahoma City Zoo, which is her current home. Another Asian elephant calf born at Dickerson Park Zoo lives there with Chandra. Her name is Asha. Moola's next calf to be born through the Dickerson Park Zoo Asian Elephant breeding program was Haji. Haji a beautiful baby Asian elephant was born on November 28, 1999 at Dickerson Park Zoo. All of Springfield was devastated at the loss of Haji to the elephant herpes virus on July 17, 2002. The staff had treated him with the same treatment as they had treated Chandra. However it had not been successful as it had been with Chandra. The staff had done everything they could, it just was not possible to save little Haji. Dickerson Park Zoo still has some Haji items, if you would like to contact them and help Springfield remember little Haji. A female Asian elephant can weigh about 6,000 pounds on average. Asian elephant cows usually have single calf following a gestation period of almost two years. Asian elephant calves weigh between 110 to 330 pounds when they are born. Elephants are fully grown at the age of 17. Newborn elephant calves can stand soon after birth. The infant may nurse from its mother or from other females. After a few days it can follow its mother as she goes about her normal activities. Baby elephants begin to eat some grass after several months but may continue nursing for 18 months. They also eat their mother's dung, which contains nutrients as well as the symbiotic bacteria that aid in the digestion of cellulose. Mothers continue to supervise their young for several years after weaning. During the birth of a calf the members of the herd will gather around to help "midwife." Baby elephants will grow rapidly in the first few years of life, and will reach 2,200 lbs. by 6 years old. Remember, The Asian Elephant is an endangered specie. So managed breeding programs like the one at Dickerson Park Zoo are vital.
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