# Fears for baby elephant living at Portland zoo as she is struck down with potentially deadly virus

- URL: https://talkfuse.com/story/fears-for-baby-elephant-living-at-portland-zoo-as-she-is-struck-down-with-potentially-deadly-virus/
- Published: 2026-11-05T16:04:50+00:00
- Updated: 2026-11-05T16:25:35+00:00
- Original publisher: Daily Mail (publisher lean: Right)
- Original article: https://www.dailymail.com/news/article-16268253/baby-elephant-Portland-potentially-deadly-virus.html?ns_mchannel=rss&ns_campaign=1490&ito=1490
- Topics: Health, Medicine, World

## Key points

- Tula-Tu is stable after treatment for EEHV-1B.
- Her health markers and appetite are improving.
- Researchers are studying her samples to support future treatments.

## Summary

Tula-Tu, a young Asian elephant at Oregon Zoo in Portland, has EEHV-1B, a virus that can progress rapidly and is a leading cause of death among young Asian elephants. She is currently stable and showing encouraging signs after several rounds of treatment, but her condition is being closely monitored.

Her white-cell counts are nearly normal, her viral load is falling, and her appetite and alertness have improved. Tula received an mRNA vaccine earlier this year for the different EEHV-1A strain, and it is not yet known whether it offers protection against 1B. Her blood is being tested by laboratories including Oregon State University, Baylor College of Medicine and the Smithsonian, as part of research into vaccines and treatments; her sister Lilly died from EEHV at six in 2018.

---
Summarised by TalkFuse (https://talkfuse.com/). Quote the original publisher for the reporting and link this page for the summary and discussion.