Wildlife Veterinarian • Elephant Doctor • Snake Surgeon • Conservationist
Dr. Krishnamoorthy Asokan
Dedicated to Saving Wildlife Through Veterinary Science, Compassion and Conservation.
Career Impact35+Years of Veterinary Service 15+Years in Wildlife & Wildlife Veterinary Medicine 1,000+Free-Ranging Wild Animals Treated 500+Snake Treatments & Surgeries, Indian Rock Python Research 500+Wildlife Necropsy Investigations 100+Peacocks & Other Birds Treated & Rehabilitated
A lifetime devoted to wildlife health and conservation
Dr. Krishnamoorthy Asokan, B.V.Sc. Learn Wildlife Veterinary Skills from an Experienced Wildlife Veterinarian
Gain practical knowledge and professional insights into the safe and ethical management, handling, capture, restraint, rescue, and transportation of native and exotic wildlife.
Learn from the field experience of Dr. Krishnamoorthy Asokan, a wildlife veterinarian with extensive experience in wildlife rescue, elephant treatment, snake surgery, wildlife conservation, and zoo management.
About Dr. Krishnamoorthy Asokan
Pioneering Wildlife Veterinary Medicine: A Legacy of Service & Conservation
- Dr. Krishnamoorthy Asokan is a distinguished wildlife veterinarian, conservationist, researcher and environmental educator with over 35 years of veterinary service, including extensive experience in Wildlife Conservation, Elephant Medicine, Reptile Research and Surgery, Biodiversity Research, Zoo management and Environmental Education. Throughout his career, he has devoted himself to rescuing, treating, rehabilitating and conserving India’s precious wildlife.
- His field service has included the treatment and management of wild elephants, hyenas, snakes, Indian Rock Pythons, birds, reptiles and other wildlife, often under challenging field conditions. His work has earned recognition as the “Elephant Doctor” and as one of India’s pioneering “Snake Surgeons.” His contributions to Indian Rock Python research and radio-telemetry studies have helped strengthen scientific understanding of snake movement, behaviour and habitat use. His elephant conservation work has included the rescue, treatment and rehabilitation of orphaned elephant calves, including Bommi (Ammu), whose story was featured in the Oscar-winning documentary The Elephant Whisperers.
- Beyond individual animal treatment, his work encompasses wildlife rescue, surgery, rehabilitation, post-mortem investigations, biodiversity research, human–wildlife conflict mitigation and zoo animal health management. He has also conducted training and awareness programmes for veterinarians, forest personnel, wildlife rescue volunteers, students and conservationists, sharing practical knowledge and encouraging greater responsibility towards wildlife and nature.
- His professional journey reflects the powerful combination of scientific knowledge, compassion and dedicated field service—demonstrating that wildlife veterinary medicine is not merely about treating animals, but also about understanding threats, supporting conservation, protecting biodiversity and giving rescued wildlife a second chance to survive in the wild. Science provides the knowledge, compassion provides the purpose, and field service transforms both into meaningful conservation action.
Areas of ExpertiseIntegrated Wildlife Conservation through Clinical Care, Field Rescue, Scientific Research, Rehabilitation, Training, and Conservation Education :
His work involved in clinical care, field rescue, scientific research, rehabilitation, training, and conservation education. He has provided advanced veterinary care to wildlife, led rescue and emergency response operations, conducted scientific research on wildlife health and conservation, rehabilitated injured and orphaned wild animals for release, trained veterinarians, forest personnel, students, and wildlife rescue volunteers, and promoted conservation education through public awareness and community outreach programs. 
Wildlife veterinary expertise
Elephant Rescue & Medicine
Emergency treatment, capture, translocation, orphan calf rearing, health monitoring, postmortem investigation, and conflict mitigation.
Explore elephant work →Snake Surgery & Conservation
Advanced reptile surgery, cancer treatment, fracture repair, disease management, incubation, rehabilitation, and safe release.
Explore snake work →Bird Rescue & Orthopaedic Surgery
Wing fracture repair, eye treatment, wound reconstruction, rehabilitation, flight recovery, and release of native birds.
Explore bird work →Wildlife Rehabilitation
Specialized rescue and veterinary care for hyenas, gaur, deer, monkeys, chameleons, bats, turtles, crocodiles, and other wildlife.
Explore investigations →Wildlife Disease Investigation
Clinical diagnosis, necropsy, toxicology, forensic examination, disease surveillance, and mortality investigation.
Explore investigations →Radio Telemetry Research
Pioneering Indian Rock Python radio telemetry combining anesthesia, transmitter surgery, field tracking, and conservation science.
Explore research →Career Highlights
Service, leadership and public education
- 35+ years of veterinary service across animal husbandry, wildlife, forest veterinary medicine, and public service.
- Wildlife Veterinarian and Elephant Doctor with extensive field experience in rescue, treatment, rehabilitation, capture, and translocation.
- India’s pioneer in snake surgery, providing more than 500 clinical treatments and surgical interventions since 2011.
- Zoo Director of V.O.C. Mini Zoological Park, Coimbatore Corporation, from 2011 to 2014. As Zoo Director, promoted conservation education and inspired thousands of school and college students through wildlife awareness programmes.
- Wildlife researcher who led India’s pioneering Indian Rock Python radio telemetry study.
- Environmental educator and Naan Mudhalvan trainer Delivered hundreds of public awareness programmes, seminars, workshops, and guest lectures on wildlife conservation, biodiversity, snakebite prevention, and environmental protection. who has trained forest staff, veterinarians, rescuers, students, and the public.
Signature Wildlife Work
Clinical care, research and conservation leadership
- Rescue, treatment, and rehabilitation of injured and orphaned wild elephants, including successful rehabilitation of orphan calves in protected environments.
- More than 500 wildlife necropsies across elephants, Indian gaur, tigers, leopards, reptiles, birds, and other species, supporting wildlife health, toxicology, forensic investigation, and management decisions.
- Pioneering snake surgery and reptile medicine, including cancer surgery, foreign-body removal, fracture repair, eye surgery, infection management, rehabilitation, and release.
- Leadership of India’s first Indian Rock Python radio telemetry research project, generating valuable information on movement, home range, habitat use, thermoregulation, seasonal behaviour, and ecology.
- Rescue, treatment, rehabilitation, and release of hundreds of birds, snakes, and other wild animals into suitable natural habitats.
- Zoo management, captive wildlife healthcare, conservation breeding, environmental education, and training for wildlife rescuers, veterinarians, forest staff, volunteers, and students.
Major Wildlife Achievements
Conservation impact across species
Elephant Conservation
- Elephant rescue operations and emergency field treatment.
- Elephant postmortem and disease investigations.
- Orphan calf rescue, rearing, rehabilitation, and protected-camp transition.
- Scientific support for human–elephant conflict mitigation, capture, translocation, and post-release monitoring.
Snake Conservation
- Advanced snake surgeries and clinical treatment.
- Indian Rock Python radio telemetry research.
- Venomous and non-venomous snake rescue.
- Artificial incubation, hatching, rehabilitation, and safe release programmes.
Bird Conservation
- Wing fracture and orthopaedic surgeries.
- Eye surgery and ophthalmic treatment.
- Structured rehabilitation and release.
Other Wild Animals
- Hyenas, Spotted Deer, Monkeys, Chameleons, Indian Frui Bats, Turtles, Peacocks, Raptors, Owls, Indian Gaur, Leopards, Wild cats, and other native wildlife.
Impact
“Saving Wildlife, Advancing Veterinary Science & Empowering the Next Generation of Conservationists.”
- Wildlife rescue and rehabilitation
- Elephant conservation and welfare
- Snake research and reptile medicine
- Veterinary innovation in field conditions
- Biodiversity protection and disease surveillance
- Community awareness and human–wildlife coexistence
- Student, veterinarian, forest staff, and rescue-volunteer training.
- A lifelong commitment to wildlife rescue, veterinary medicine, scientific research, conservation and capacity building. Through decades of field experience, Dr. Krishnamoorthy Asokan has worked to save and rehabilitate wildlife while advancing practical approaches to elephant medicine, snake surgery, Indian Rock Python research, wildlife treatment and zoo veterinary care.
- His work also extends to training and awareness programmes for veterinarians, forest personnel, rescue volunteers, students and conservationists, helping develop the knowledge, skills and confidence required for effective wildlife protection. By combining science with compassion and field service, his journey demonstrates how veterinary professionals can contribute not only to saving individual animals, but also to strengthening conservation practice and inspiring the next generation to protect wildlife and biodiversity.
Connect & Collaborate
Protect Wildlife • Preserve Nature • Inspire Future Generations.Explore Dr. Asokan’s career, research, wildlife rescue stories, publications, awards, and educational programmes.
About This Website
- “Wildlife Veterinary Education and Research" Welcome to the official website of Dr. Krishnamoorthy Asokan, a wildlife veterinarian with over 35 years of veterinary service, including 15 years dedicated to wildlife conservation, zoo management, elephant medicine, reptile and Birds surgery, wildlife research, and environmental education.
- This website has been created for veterinarians, wildlife and zoo veterinarians, biologists, wildlife researchers, students, forest officers, and wildlife enthusiasts to enhance their understanding of wildlife health, conservation, and veterinary science. It provides practical knowledge and scientific information on elephants, mammals, reptiles, birds, and other wildlife species, with special emphasis on wildlife rescue, emergency treatment, rehabilitation, veterinary management, and necropsy findings.
- Throughout my career, I have been privileged to work in wildlife rescue and rehabilitation, elephant conservation, snake and Birds surgery, zoo management, marine wildlife conservation, disaster management, wildlife disease investigation, environmental education, and public awareness. My work has always been guided by one simple mission:
- "Saving Wildlife • Conserving Nature • Inspiring Future Generations."
- This portal documents my professional journey, field experiences, scientific achievements, wildlife rescue operations, research projects, publications, awards, conservation initiatives, educational programmes, and training activities. It also serves as a knowledge resource for veterinarians, wildlife professionals, researchers, students, forest personnel, and everyone interested in wildlife conservation. Through the sharing of real-life case histories, clinical experiences, research-based information, and conservation practices, this website aims to promote scientific knowledge, strengthen wildlife healthcare, support biodiversity conservation, and inspire the next generation of wildlife veterinarians and conservationists.