Elephants in Thailand: Cultural heritage fights for survival!

Elephants in Thailand: Cultural heritage fights for survival!

Ban Ta Klang, Thailand - In Thailand, elephants are not only majestic animals, but also cultural symbols. Tourists often interact with them, which leads to a booming business within the growing tourism industry. These huge creatures even have their own letters in Thai Alphabet, known as "Chor Chang", and are present in many local names and names. But despite their cultural importance, elephants in Thailand are confronted with serious challenges. The loss of their habitat due to human activities, the effects of climate change and more frequent extreme weather events are strongly concerned with the animals. So reports Derwesten.de that many elephants fight for survival.

A ray of hope are the elephant camps that take care of the well-being of the animals, pepp them up and sometimes also reveal them again. A tourist who visited one of these camps had a remarkable encounter with a small elephant. The elephant approached her with a raised trunk, hugged her and pulled her off the hat that he later put on her again.

The village of elephants

in the Ban Ta region, which is known as the "village of elephants", the Sri Somboon family lives, which is deeply rooted in elephants. The Patriarch, Sri Somboon, has several elephants himself and has learned a lot about the traditional methods of elephant care in his life. From the age of seven, he was instructed by his father, an elephant catcher, into the craft of the Mahuts. Today, as a middle -aged man, he raised six elephants, five of whom live in Ban Ta and another work in Pattaya.

SOMBOON describes its elephants as "house elephants". Next to his terrace, a two -month -old baby elephant plays Fröhlich with his mother. Another elephant, a three -year bull called Saeng Kaem, is trained for shows and is making progress in painting - a popular ability in tourist presentations. In recent years, Saeng Kaem has already been sold for $ 80,000, which is considered the average price for a young, trained elephant in Thailand. If he is ready, he will be employed in a tourist camp further south.

challenges in elephant training

The training methods for elephants that are used in many camps, but raise lucid questions about ethics and animal welfare. Young elephants are usually separated from their mothers at around two years. While the baby is locked away, the mother is tied to a tree. An elephant hook is used to teach the animals basic commands. This process often includes brutal methods such as captivating the front legs, to bring the animals to certain positions, or pull on the rope while a MAUSE inserts the hook on the back of the elephant. Despite these practices, the elephants are often viewed as part of a traditional culture, which is increasingly questioned in the modern world, as is also questioned nationalgeographic.de

The existing traditions around elephant husbandry in Thailand are therefore a reflection of the balance between cultural heritage and responsibility towards these impressive animals. The fate of the elephants depends on sensitive use of their well -being and answering fundamental questions about the ethics of animal husbandry.