For years, Motala was remembered as an elephant whose life had been forever changed by a landmine. Her injury was a painful reminder that the consequences of human conflict do not stop at national borders or distinguish between people and wildlife. Animals living in forests affected by war can become innocent victims of dangers they cannot see or understand.
But Motala’s story did not end with the loss of her foot. After years of medical treatment, rehabilitation, and extraordinary dedication from the people caring for her, she received a specially designed prosthetic limb. In August 2009, ten years after the accident, she took her first steps with a permanent artificial leg.
It was a remarkable moment, not only for Motala but also for the future of elephant rehabilitation.
The Landmine That Changed Her Life
In August 1999, Motala was working as a logging elephant near the Thailand–Myanmar border. The region had experienced decades of conflict, leaving landmines scattered throughout parts of the forest.
On August 15, while her owner allowed her to forage for food, Motala stepped on one of the hidden explosives.
The blast devastated her left front foot, causing injuries so severe that amputation became necessary. Fragments from the explosion also injured other parts of her body, making her condition even more complicated.
Despite the severity of her wounds, Motala survived. Incredibly, she managed to make her way back toward Thailand, covering approximately ten kilometers over three days before being transported to the Friends of the Asian Elephant (FAE) Hospital in Lampang.
By the time she arrived on August 18, the damage was extensive. Her injured foot was badly torn, and parts of the tissue had begun to deteriorate. Veterinarians faced a difficult decision: they needed to remove the severely damaged tissue and prevent the infection from spreading.
The operation was carried out on August 28, 1999, with a team of approximately 30 medical professionals, including veterinarians, doctors, and nurses. The procedure required an extraordinary amount of anesthetic, reportedly enough to render 70 people unconscious, a record recognized by Guinness World Records.
The surgery saved Motala’s life, but it left her with only three functioning legs.
A Promise to Help Her Walk Again
At the Friends of the Asian Elephant Hospital, Motala received the care she needed to recover from the operation. The hospital’s founder, Soraida Salwala, was determined to give her more than simply a safe place to live.
The possibility of a prosthetic limb offered hope, but designing one for an elephant was an enormous challenge.
An elephant’s body weight places extraordinary pressure on its legs. A prosthetic device would have to support several tons while remaining stable enough for the animal to stand and move. It also needed to be comfortable and suitable for the changing condition of her injured limb.
The team could not simply adapt an ordinary human prosthesis. They needed specialists willing to develop a solution for an animal of Motala’s size and physical needs.
The early years were devoted to wound care, healing, and rehabilitation. Her injury took a long time to recover, and the veterinary team had to make sure the affected area was sufficiently healed before attempting a more advanced prosthetic fitting.
In August 2005, Motala began wearing a temporary supportive device made from canvas and filled with sawdust. It was designed to help her become accustomed to having something attached to her injured leg while gradually strengthening the surrounding muscles and tendons.
It was not yet the permanent solution everyone hoped for, but it represented an important step toward making that possibility real.
Ten Years After the Accident, a New Leg
The development of Motala’s permanent prosthesis required years of cooperation between the Friends of the Asian Elephant Foundation and the Prostheses Foundation of Thailand.
In August 2009, a decade after the landmine explosion, specialists finally prepared a permanent artificial limb for her.
The fitting was a major achievement. The device had been designed specifically for Motala, taking into account the unusual demands of supporting an elephant’s weight. It was the result of years of experience, experimentation, and determination from people who refused to accept that losing a foot meant she could never walk comfortably again.
At first, Motala needed time to understand the unfamiliar device. Putting weight on an artificial limb would not happen automatically. She had to become comfortable with its shape, balance, and sensation.
Then came the moment everyone had been waiting for.
On August 16, 2009, Motala walked out of her enclosure wearing her new prosthesis. Her first stroll lasted around ten minutes. She walked around the enclosure twice, carefully testing the artificial limb. Although she was not yet placing her full weight on it, the initial results were encouraging.
At one point, she used her trunk to gather dust and spray it into the air.
For the people watching, it was an unforgettable sight. The elephant who had once struggled to survive after a devastating explosion was now taking steps with a new artificial foot.
Her recovery was not an overnight miracle. It was the result of ten years of treatment, patience, and continuous effort.
A Breakthrough That Helped Other Elephants
Motala’s story became part of a much larger effort to improve care for elephants suffering from serious injuries.
Her experience demonstrated that prosthetic technology could offer meaningful support to elephants who had lost limbs. It also helped advance collaboration between veterinary professionals and specialists who traditionally worked with human amputees.
Another elephant, Mosha, who had also lost a leg after stepping on a landmine, became the world’s first elephant to wear a prosthetic leg in 2008. Motala followed as the second, receiving her permanent prosthesis in 2009.
These cases showed that rehabilitation for elephants could go beyond traditional wound treatment. With the right design and careful monitoring, artificial limbs could help injured animals regain mobility and improve their quality of life.
The Friends of the Asian Elephant Hospital has also cared for elephants affected by many other dangers, including injuries from logging, accidents, and human activities. Its work highlights a difficult reality: wild and working elephants often suffer consequences created by human decisions, while having no control over the circumstances that put them at risk.
The Meaning Behind Motala’s First Steps
Motala’s journey is especially powerful because her recovery was never guaranteed. When she first arrived at the hospital, her injuries were so severe that saving her life was already a tremendous achievement. The idea that she might one day walk with an artificial limb required a level of commitment that extended far beyond a single operation.
Her first steps with the permanent prosthesis became a symbol of what can happen when compassion is supported by medical knowledge, patience, and innovation.
She did not simply receive a replacement for the foot she had lost. She became part of a breakthrough that helped open new possibilities for other injured elephants.
A landmine had taken away part of Motala’s ability to walk, but it could not erase her chance to live a better life.
And perhaps that is the most meaningful part of her story: sometimes, giving an animal a second chance does not mean restoring everything that was lost. It means finding a way forward, one careful step at a time.
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