The good news– “ethical” & “eco” are trendy. Unfortunately, that makes finding truly ethical elephant sanctuaries much more difficult.
Let’s face it. Elephant eco-tourism is tricky business.
& there are A LOT of people weighing in on the issue. Misinformation is spread left and right. The only thing that’s absolutely certain is that we all love these precious pachyderms.
And from my many stints spent in SouthEast Asia over the past 5 years, I’ve learned it’s a little more complicated than originally meets the eye.
But let’s take a look at the Elephant Tourism Industry in Asia and how we can support organizations that TRULY put the elephants first.
An Intro to Asian Elephants.
The smaller relative of the African Elephant. Asian Elephants are spread across SouthEast Asia to India & Sri Lanka and while they used to roam freely relatively few can be found in the wild today.
Because there are WAY too many humans on this planet.
An Asian Elephant needs to eat 300 pounds of fruit, sugarcane, and grasses each day to survive. Obviously to obtain this much food they have to roam. The problem is….there isn’t anywhere left for them to roam. Cities were carved out of the jungle and farms popped up along their favorite grazing hillsides & the elephants were effectively pushed from their natural habitats.
There are around 40,000-50,000 Asian Elephants left in the world. About 7,000 of those are living in Thailand.
This number has declined by about 50% in the last three generations.
Asian elephants have become reliant on humans to sustain them. There simply isn’t enough land (and therefore food) to go around.
Countries in Southeast Asia have a long history with the Asian Elephant. They used them in battle, for farming & logging, & they were a sign of wealth & prosperity.
In modern-day SE Asia, the role of the Elephant has slightly shifted. Tourist camps are now more profitable than logging operations.
What is Elephant Tourism? & Why is That a Good Thing?
Enter elephant tourism.
Elephants cost a lot of money. They eat 300 pounds of food per day after all! They also need shelter, area to roam about, and access to HUGE amounts of fresh water for drinking and bathing.
So, it’s only natural that those who own an elephant would like to earn back some of the money spent on them.
This biggest problem is that anyone can own an elephant. Anyone, with $40,000 that is.
Because of the long history of human & elephant working side by side, governments have little support for outlawing the ability to own an elephant. It’s a source of livelihood for tens of thousands of people across SouthEast Asia.
In my personal opinion, more could be done to incentivize ETHICAL use of elephants in tourism. This would allow locals to make a living but encourage a good quality of living for the elephants.
Elephant Tourism changed the whole game for Elephants. Instead of long hours at the logging camps where animals are often worked to death in place of real machinery, it became more profitable for them to be used as props for tourists.
This is almost always a step up in living conditions for the elephant.
Why is it Vital that we Support Only Ethical Elephant Sanctuaries? & What Exactly is an Ethical Sanctuary?
Ethical Elephant sanctuaries are difficult to define. Mostly because public opinion on what you can & can’t do with elephants is always shifting. For example, riding elephants seems to be almost universally frowned upon. Meanwhile, bathing with elephants has become the “hot new thing” in elephant tourism.
But is one better or worse than the other for the elephants? People are constantly arguing both sides of the coin. So as far as defining “ethical” let’s just say that an ethical sanctuary is a facility that puts the elephant’s needs above their own desire to turn a profit.
Elephants first.
If you truly care about animals than your reason for supporting only these organizations is obvious. When you put money into the hands of people who exploit animals they will obtain more animals and the cycle will continue to repeat endlessly.
We vote with our dollar.
The only way to stop the abuse of animals for personal gain is to stop paying them. Eventually, it will stop being profitable for them to own an elephant & they will be forced to sell them to established sanctuaries.
Sanctuaries have to purchase elephants from their abusive owners. Unless they recieve them as a donation. Since it isn’t illegal to own an elephant privately it is near impossible to confiscate a mistreated elephant. It has to be given up willingly.
And to make matters even more complicated, many of the owners aren’t awful people. They are very poor people. Impoverished people desperately trying to make a living. This is especially true for the roadside stands you come across in Asia. A single elephant tied to a post, awaiting tourists to feed them their daily rations. And although in the short-term we are helping that elephant to be fed, in the long term we are encouraging more locals to do the same. We must force them to find another way to make a living.
What are the Absolute Red Flags Before I Sign Up for an Encounter?
So, how do you find these ethical sanctuaries with unethical farms & camps masquerading as the real deal? Here are the red flags and warning signs to be on the lookout for before you go.
1. The experience is a roadside stand or a single elephant.
These are the personally owned elephants. A local simply doesn’t have the ability to properly care for an elephant. They don’t have space, money, or the veterinary care available for them.
2. They offer elephant treks.
This is different from ride camps (which can also be atrocious), it involves saddled elephants for long periods of time where they trek you through the jungle for miles.
3. The Elephants are visibly injured or chained.
During the daytime hours, elephants shouldn’t be harnessed. If they are it means they likely spend the better part of their life that way. (I’ll get to why some sanctuaries harness elephants at night a little later.) & obviously elephants with scrapes and scratches on their sides (often from pacing around a post they are tied to), bleeding wounds on their heads (from bullhooks), or raw wounds around their ankles (from tight restricting chains) are definite signs that the elephants aren’t being treated properly.
4. Elephant shows or “tricks” are part of the attraction.
Most elephants that are allowed around people at all are “broken”. For an elephant to seamlessly obey humans and entertain by riding a bicycle, painting elaborate paintings, or balancing on various items–they definitely have to be.
“Breaking” an elephant is the cruel practice of separating a baby from it’s mother, tying the elephant down, and inflicting pain and punishment to the animal so that it fears & obeys humans. This goes on for weeks until the elephants spirit is broken. This is a video of the process. Warning: Graffic Content.
I should also point out some zoos and sanctuaries offer “elephant paintings”. These are usually just scribbles made casually by the elephant’s trunk & not harmful to the animal. But when the painting is an actual landscape or object it is often made by a mahout guiding the elephant’s trunk with a firmly placed nail.
5. Bangkok is not the place to see elephants.
Large cities often boast ride camps & other exotic animal attractions. Don’t fall into their trap. These camps are small, poorly managed, and dirty.
Think about where you are & if elephants should be there. That’s often a good indicator of how they are being treated. There are plenty of better things you should be doing in Bangkok, Thailand.
Myths, Common Misconceptions, & Gray Areas
Let’s get into more complicated matters. They rumors spread and areas that aren’t so black & white. Decisions you’ll have to make for yourself when choosing which sanctuaries to support.
Elephant Riding.
Can you ethically ride an elephant? The answer is a hesitant maybe. A study was published this last year that came to the conclusion that elephants in many of Asia’s ride camps were just as “healthy” as those in sanctuaries.
I found that the study contains some serious flaws. For example, since most “sanctuary elephants” come from riding & logging camps it makes logical sense they would be in comparable condition to those still in the camps. The damage was already done. But animal well-fare is about more than being fed enough. Only elephants raised in sanctuaries and those raised in camps should have been compared.
Personally, I advocate staying away from ride camps in Asia. The elephants are often overworked and saddled for far too many hours per day which results in permanent spinal injury. However, I have seen several “mahout training schools” that offer longer courses (over several days) where you bond with an elephant and learn to ride them bareback over short distances. This could be a viable option for those who really want to ride an elephant.
Elephant Bathing.
This is a hard thing for tourists to hear but…the less contact you have with an elephant the better their lives are.
Bathing with elephants is everywhere. & going out into the wilderness with elephants and frolicking around in the mud and rivers with them is an amazing experience. I’ve done it.
But I didn’t this time in Asia.
Mostly because I felt weird being encouraged to throw mud on the elephants and then promptly help them wash it off. If an elephant wants to be muddy or wet…he/she will do it himself.
Ultimately, it’s up to you whether or not you feel comfortable engaging with the elephants in this way.
Chaining Elephants at Night.
A controversial subject.
Elephants only sleep for about 4 hours per night and they do it standing up. They also have a natural tendency to roam. & destroy any fences (even concrete ones) that get in their way.
A loose elephant in the middle of the night can cover some serious ground in search of more food. They could wander into a neighboring farm and be killed by the farmer defending his crop (yes, that is legal) or wander into nearby towns.
So that leaves 2 options. 24-hour human surveillance or securing the elephants for part of the evening.
The Bullhook.
I have a conflicting relationship with this instrument. A bullhook was created to be a “guide” an extension of your arm for zookeepers to harmlessly encourage elephants down the right path. Unfortunately, this definition seems to have been lost in Asia.
This large icepick looking instrument is often used to gouge the elephant when it disobeys and encourage obedience through pain. The bullhook is often used during the previously mentioned “breaking” of the elephants so they are conditioned to fear the very sight of it. Allowing mahouts to simply carry the hook & inspire obedience without actually using it.
This doesn’t mean all sanctuaries that use a bullhook are inherently unethical.
There is a right way to use them. A way that doesn’t harm the elephants. & on the flip side that “walking stick” your mahout is carrying at the sanctuary can be used in exactly the same negative way as the bullhook.
You’ll just need to do your research. Thoroughly.
Disclaimer: If you follow me on social media, I have openly discussed my dislike of the bullhook and it’s role in most Asian elephant sanctuaries. I’ve recently learned a lot about the positive potential uses of a bullhook and why they can be a useful tool in many settings. That being said- Asia has a bad track record with the bullhook & you should be extra vigilant in your research if you find out the sanctuary of your choice uses them.
Do Your Research.
Understand the impact you have on the elephants & decide what you are comfortable doing. Determine by TripAdvisor reviews & their website the activities they offer and if that raises any red flags. Check out photos of the sanctuary beforehand & ask questions before you book. The most important step we can take is to educate ourselves and understand what we are signing up for.
Take the time to make a difference.
The best & most ethical sanctuaries are going to be non-profit, low-interaction, education-based, and often a little more expensive.
The World We Live in Today.
Obviously, the ideal way to interact with elephants would be to encounter them in the wild.
But humans have created a world where that scenario can’t exist for the Asian Elephant. And sadly, the way deforestation is going it’s likely only going to get worse. Zoo’s & Sanctuaries are the only hope we have for providing the Asian elephant with a healthy happy existence.
And our system isn’t perfect.
But some organizations are making an effort.
Suggestions on Ethical Elephant Sanctuaries?
These three elephant sanctuaries have truly stood out in their efforts to put the animals first.
Elephant Nature Park (Chiang Mai, Thailand)
Chiang Mai is one of the most popular places to interact with elephants and there is no shortage of sanctuaries.
But Elephant Nature Park is the original ethical elephant sanctuary. A non-profit organization run by the kindest woman who simply wants to give mistreated elephants a better life.
This rescue and rehabilitation park allows visitors to stay overnight at the center as well. You’ll get the opportunity to observe the elephants in their natural habitat bathing and enjoying one another’s company.
Phuket Elephant Sanctuary (Phuket, Thailand)
Another amazing Thai sanctuary you’ll encounter while driving around Phuket. Currently, they have 9 elderly and disabled elephants rescued from the logging and ride-camp industry. Your visit goes directly to their veterinary care & helps them to rescue additional elephants.
During your time at the sanctuary, you’ll roam the grounds & “walk with the elephants”, feed them for mealtime, and observe them bathing and frolicking in their natural habitat.
This is a great experience for those who want to learn a lot about the elephant industry in Thailand & get to know a small herd of geriatric pachyderms.
Phuket Elephant Sanctuary will soon be offering overnight excursions once their accomodation options are completed (estimated March 2020).
Mondulkiri Elephant & Wildlife Society (Mondulkiri Province, Cambodia)
I haven’t personally been to this sanctuary (yet), but it has been visited & praised by many ethical animal “experts”.
The sanctuary is a non-profit community project that not only provides for rescued elephants but also provides jobs and support for the indigenous community.
During your visit, you’ll get to observe the elephants in their natural habitat trekking through the jungle alongside them. They also offer bathing with the elephants in the natural rainforest pools. If you prefer an overnight visit you can opt for an overnight trek that include visits to an indigenous family home!
Ultimately, it’s up to you! You’ll have countless opportunities to interact with elephants on your trip to Asia. And with that, you’ll have the responsibility of supporting ethical elephant sanctuaries that put the elephants first. Hopefully, this guide helps you to understand a little bit about why certain encounters are/aren’t harmful to our favorite animal friends.
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