Pinnewela Elephant Orphanage

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Pinnewela Elephant Orphanage is an orphanage and breeding ground established in 1975 for abandoned elephants in Sri Lanka. Pinnewela is located on Rambukkana Road, near Kegalla, Sri Lanka, and is currently home to one of the largest elephant herds in captivity in the world with more than sixty elephants.

[edit] History

Pinnewela was first established by the Sri Lankan department of wildlife in 1975 on a 24-acre preserve near the town of Kegalla, halfway between Colombo, the capital of Sri Lanka, and Kandy. Its main purpose was to feed and provide care and sanctuary to orphaned baby elephants that were found in the wild. In 1978, the orphanage was taken over by the National Zoological Gardens, and in 1982 an elephant breeding program was launched.

[edit] Tourism

The orphanage is open to the public daily, and all admission fees are used to offset the cost of operations and upkeep. Visitors to the park can view many different aspects of the care and daily routine of the elephants including watching the babies being hand-fed from large bottles, as well as being able to observe the elephants walk to and bathe in the nearby Maha Oya River.