What’s
it like caring for a 1,400 pound teething baby elephant
Baby elephant Scotty has his first
tusk
The Louisville Zoo’s 18-month-old baby
African elephant Scotty just reached another milestone—he is
teething!
Scotty’s right tusk has poked through
and the other one is on the way.
“He is doing great,” Louisville Zoo
Elephant Area Supervisor Dave Campbell said. “But sometimes it
is a sensitive area for him.”
Campbell and the other elephant keepers
are giving him extra special care and keeping the tiny tusk
clean by washing it with water every day.
“No Crest or Colgate, though,” Campbell
quipped.
Since Scotty’s tusks are just beginning
to grow, visitors won’t be able to see them for awhile.
DID YOU KNOW?
-
Tusks are fundamentally no
different than ordinary teeth.
-
Tusks are actually upper incisors,
not canines. They are the elephant’s only incisors.
-
Elephants use tusks for digging,
ripping of bark, foraging, resting a heavy trunk and as
weapons.
-
Both African elephant males and
females have tusks, but only the Asian male elephants have
tusks that protrude beyond the lips.
-
Elephants often use one tusk more
than the other ( i.e. the parallel in humans is right handed
and left handed people)
-
Tusks begin to protrude beyond the
lips of an elephant at around 2-3 years of age, and will
continue to grow throughout its life. The growth rate of
tusks is approximately 15-18 centimeters per year.
-
Elephants normally go through six
sets of molars during their lifetime. When older molars get
worn-out, they are replaced horizontally with new ones.
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The Louisville Zoo, a non-profit organization and
state zoo of Kentucky, is dedicated to bettering the bond
between people and our planet by providing excellent care for
animals, a great experience for visitors, and leadership in
scientific research and conservation education. The Zoo is
accredited by the American Association of Museums (AAM) and by
the Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA). For more
information, visit www.louisvillezoo.org.
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