HOW TO PLAY, FEED, BATHE, and protect ELEPHANTS IN THAILAND
Last Updated: 05/27/20 | may 27th, 2020
Elephants have long been important in Thailand, where they are a symbol of religion, history, royalty, and power.
According to Buddhist legend, Queen Maya of Sakya, Lord Buddha’s mother, dreamed that a divine Bodhisattva on a white elephant touched her side. She later became pregnant, and since then, elephants have had a strong connection to divinity and royalty in Buddhism. As Thailand is a predominantly Buddhist society, elephants are held in high esteem.
Additionally, elephants were used in the logging industry to help clear trees, so there was a practical nature to their importance as well.
After a government-imposed ban on logging in 1989, the industry dwindled and suddenly all of these elephants had no “purpose.” Their owners were left needing a way to make money for their families and the care of the elephants. since most tourists came to Thailand thinking “I can’t wait to ride an elephant,” it was a lucrative transition.
Elephants were taken into cities and fed by tourists who wanted a photo. In the jungles, riding camps were set up where visitors could ride an elephant through the jungle, take their photos, and return home with tales of their amazing experience.
Elephants became big company in the country. After all, as a tourist, who wouldn’t want a chance to see or ride one? It’s a dream come true for many.
When I lived in Thailand, I learned about the true nature of elephant tourism. I learned how those elephants roaming the streets were drugged and typically starved.
And it was illegal too.
Elephants in cities had been banned for years, but, as is common in Thailand, officials turned a blind eye or were paid off.
I was always torn: do I ignore them, hoping this will eventually end the practice, or do I feed the elephant out of kindness but perpetuate this cruelty?
It wasn’t until a few years ago, after an accident that left a child, a driver, and an elephant dead, that officials in Bangkok finally cracked down and made it elephant free.
And then there’s the riding? I mean riding an elephant sounds amazing!
Until you realize how the animal is treated, especially in Thailand.
When you ride an elephant, you get a glimpse into their poor treatment. I remember once yelling at the mahout (trainer) for swinging his hook a little too hard at the elephant. It left me very perturbed – and wishing I hadn’t ridden that elephant.
I didn’t know better. There wasn’t a lot of good information about there about how to see elephants in Thailand in a socially responsible way.
But the more time I spent in Thailand, the more I learned that there are no good elephant riding parks in all of Thailand. All abuse and mistreat their elephants — despite what they say. Moreover, riding elephants is actually terrible for their growth and development.
Luckily, there’s been a large movement in the last few years to protect the elephants and, now tourists, have a lot more ethical options when it comes to elephants in Thailand.
The pionner is Elephant Nature Park. Led by Lek Chailert, Elephant Nature Park (ENP) has been around since 1996 and is the biggest conservation and elephant rescue organization in Thailand.
Located outside of Chiang Mai, it is currently home to around 80 elephants (plus a menagerie of other animals) that have been saved from the tourism and logging industries. It’s a “retirement” home for elephants
Demand is so high, not only for visitors but volunteers too, that you have to make reservations in advancement to check out (for volunteers, that might mean up to a year in advance). When I tried to check out a few years ago, they were already booked for the next month!
This time, I booked ahead and was able check out and see all the good they do:
The more you learn about elephants in Thailand, the more you realize the need for change. It was heartbreaking listening to the stories of each elephant and seeing so many with broken backs, legs, and missing feet. Luckily, because of organizations like ENP and more socially conscious tourists, things are changing.
ENP has started to work with the riding camps to give up riding and move toward more animal-friendly practices. Thais are learning that people will pay big bucks to feed, bathe, and play with elephants and that this can be more lucrative, more popular, and more sustainable than offering rides.
As such, there are now a lot of places around Thailand where you can see and interact with elephants in a responsible way throughout the country:
Wildlife pals foundation of Thailand – A full-day check out is 1,600 THB per person and a half-day check out is 1,100 THB per person (excluding transport). wfft.orgl
Elephant Hills – luxury jungle camps with two-day tours that cost between 14,000-16,000 THB. elephanthills.com
The Surin project – home to upwards of 200 elephants, here you can volunteer for up to eight weeks. Il prezzoè 13.000 THB a settimana (7 giorni è il periodo di volontariato minimo). SurinProject.org.
Boon Lotts Elephant Sanctuary – Il costo per il check -out è di 6.000 THB a notte e le prenotazioni devono essere effettuate in anticipo. blesele.org.
I campi di elefanti non sono ancora spariti. Non saranno per molto, molto tempo. Ma con turisti più istruiti e un incentivo economico per i locali per trattare meglio gli elefanti, si spera, possiamo ridurre significativamente questi campi nei prossimi anni (e infine eliminarli).
Quindi la prossima volta che sei in Thailandia, per favore non guidare gli elefanti. Se vuoi vedere un elefante, dai un’occhiata a Elephant Nature Park o un programma simile e aiuta a proteggere queste straordinarie creature.
Avrai un’interazione più vicina e più personale con gli elefanti e farai del bene. È una vittoria per tutti i soggetti coinvolti.
Come controllare Elephant Nature Park
ENP si trova vicino a Chiang Mai, sebbene abbiano filiali in tutto il paese (e in Cambogia) che offrono anche esperienze etiche interattive.
Short Check outs per ENP ultime 6-7 ore e costano 2.500 THB a persona. Ciò include un buffet vegetariano e il trasporto da/per Chiang Mai.
Il loro popolare check out durante la notte (2 giorni, 1 notte) costa 5.800 THB a persona e include pasti, trasporti e alloggi.
Per un’esperienza di volontariato di 7 giorni, aspettati di pagare tra 12.000-15.000 THB a seconda della filiale che visiti.
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