Four Paws team requested to visit again to treat ailing Noor Jehan at Karachi Zoo

• Administrator says they have requested Four Paws to visit again.
• Noor Jehan has been lying visibly weak with limited motion.
• Official says health of animals at Karachi Zoo is top priority.

Days after Noor Jehan, an elephant in Pakistan's Karachi Zoo, fell in a pond in a small enclosure, the authorities concerned have called a team of doctors from the international animal welfare organisation Four Paws to treat the 17-year-old, Karachi Administrator Dr Syed Saifur Rahman said on Sunday.

A team from Four Paws arrived in Karachi earlier this month at the request of the Karachi Metropolitan Corporation (KMC) and successfully operated on Noor Jehan as well as conducted various tests.

Noor Jehan is suffering from a huge hematoma, or pool of clotted blood, inside her abdomen in addition to intestinal issues. Right after the fall — Four Paws — which has been treating the elephant virtually, recommended lifting her with a crane, ropes and belts. 

She has since been lying visibly weak with limited motion on a mound of sand, propped up against the only tree inside the enclosure.

Rahman, speaking to media persons after the inspection of the treatment being provided to Noor Jehan at the Karachi Zoo, hoped that the recommended treatment and other measures to restore the 17-year-old elephant’s health will yield useful results. 

The administrator said the process of care is ongoing, and the doctors and other staff concerned with the zoo have been instructed to arrange whatever is needed for Noor Jehan’s treatment as soon as possible.

He confirmed that Four Paws has been contacted again for the treatment of Noor Jehan and asked to come to Pakistan once again. 

He hoped that the elephant will recover soon. The official said that the health of the animals kept at the Karachi Zoo is a top priority, and everything possible is being done to take care of the animals, including birds, caged at the zoo.

Four Paws’ legal consultant Owais Awan said that they are thankful to the zoo management who are taking care of the elephant round the clock for the past four days. 

Since Noor Jehan is not giving up, he said, they will also not give up on her. 

Awan said that it is true that if a huge animal falls, it gets difficult to make it stand up again. He said that they do not know how the animal fell but her condition is now improving.