Baby elephant struggles to get back onto its feet

The video shows a struggling baby elephant’s hilarious attempt to get back onto its feet.
Baby elephants never fail to amuse. They can be hilariously clumsy; even if a baby elephant does nothing, they are so cute to look at.Show more

In the first few years of their lives, baby elephants must learn and take in incredible knowledge and skill needed to survive in the African bush. Baby elephants mimic adult elephants all the time during the learning process. One of the critical skills and abilities required is for elephants to cool themselves using mud bathing. Elephants do not have sweat glands; during hot days, they throw mud over their bodies to cool down. I was filming a mother elephant and her calf at a mud wallow. The mother elephant used her trunk to throw mud all over her body.

The baby elephant had a better plan, and instead of doing as mommy does, the baby elephant went to lie down flat in the mud, getting its body covered much more quicker. While the plan of the baby elephant might have worked to get covered in mud quicker, it didn’t think about getting back onto its feet. This was hilarious to watch as the baby elephant started swaying from side to side, over and over, to build enough momentum to get back onto its feet.

The baby elephant looked like someone trying to get out of bed on a Monday morning. Eventually, the baby elephant had enough momentum and got upright. At the same time, the mother elephant realized the struggle and assisted her calf with a loud rumble and ensured it was ok. I could feel the mother elephant's love and care for her calf. Once back on its feet, the elephant calf decided it was better to do exactly like mommy does.