I was looking up elephants in Thailand and came upon a lot of disturbing information.
1. This sight has a lengthy description of the problems, as well as some disturbing video links.
https://expertvagabond.com/elephants-in-thailand/
2. This sights summarizes the first site and describes 5 reputable elephant sanctuaries in Thailand.
https://www.lonelyplanet.com/thailand/travel-tips-and-articles/how-to-interact-ethically-with-elephants-in-thailand
3. This is one of those 5 elephant sanctuaries. Kanchanaburi (Elephant World) is near Bangkok (2.5 hr taxi ($30) or train ($15)) and also where the Bridge on the River Kwai Museum and sites are.
http://www.elephantsworld.org/
4. Olivia can be an assistant mahout for 1 -4 weeks (grin):
http://www.elephantsworld.org/mahout-program/
"O---l---i---v---i---a, the elephants are calling you."
Maybe I will go there for 3 days or so after I get back from Kuala Lumpur.
Namaste From (halfway to) Nepal
Yea, Olivia said she would never ride an elephant. She has researched it already. She did like the idea of working in a sanctuary. She said she would have a blast feeding and washing them in the water. She was already looking at trips to Africa for a sanctuary. But she did not research much about the Thai sanctuaries yet. Her plans could slow down because I explained to her that I paid for New Zealand, but was not going to pay for her to take a trip to Africa lol.... Currently between school and her new job working 3 12 shifts a week at the new Emergency Trama unit at OP Hospital, she is a busy girl....
ReplyDeleteThe difference between African and Asian Elephants: African Elephants are bigger. But, the main difference is that Asian Elephants have small ears and African Elephants have large ears.
ReplyDeleteThailand would probably be a better place:
1. Africa Elephants are mostly free. Their danger is poachers, who also kill people (as do guerillas, ebola, zombie viruses, etc.) Thailand is safe.
2. Asian elephants are workers and they need actual care after they are freed or retire. When elephants are freed/retired around the world, they are sent to Thailand. Elephants here need taken care of because there is little natural habitat. Thailand has been 80% deforested due to population and agriculture. The same is true of India.
3. Since Thailand is a popular tourist spot, travel will be cheaper.
4. The water is much safer in Thailand. African lakes have a lot more parasites living in them.
5. If I get a couple of months notice, I can chaperone from airport to sanctuary.
The one advantage Africa has is that it has many other wild animals, whereas Thailand has mainly man made tourist attractions.
Elephant spines are relatively weak. The standard I have read is no more than 200 lbs for more than 4 hours a day. Tourist elephants carry more weight and for longer periods which is what causes problems. But, riding an elephants back while bathing it does little harm. I haven't read anything about the neck. The spine cannot be damaged and the neck seems a safe place for the elephant to carry someone, since it is all muscle like our neck.