Why it’s Not Okay To Ride Asian Elephants
Start writing a post
Lifestyle

Why it’s Not Okay To Ride Asian Elephants

Nope, people aren’t just being tree huggers - there’s actual reasons why you shouldn’t.

107
Why it’s Not Okay To Ride Asian Elephants

As most of you know, I recently took a trip to Thailand to help rehabilitate elephants into the wild. On this trip, I learned a lot about ethical and unethical elephant treatment, and I’d like to share that knowledge with anyone possible. The more people that know what’s okay to do with elephants and what’s not, the less people will treat them poorly!

Let me start with a confession: I, myself, have ridden an elephant previously. I wanted to say that just to clarify that I don’t want to shame anyone who has done it before, I just want to stop it from happening in the future! For me, it happened at a circus. They were selling tickets to ride the elephant, and as a kid it seems like the coolest thing ever. It didn’t appear to hurt the elephant at all, and no one had ever told me not to. When it comes to unethical elephant treatment, this is usually how it happens - lack of education.

In Thailand, elephants are owned by families, and used to make money. Although this is a strange concept for people, think of it like this: in Wisconsin, you either own a lake house or know someone who does. Same in Thailand, except with elephants, and they would say owning a house on a lake is a weird concept too.

Initially, elephants were used in warfare. Soldiers would ride in on elephant’s back, ready to go into battle. More recently but still quite long ago, elephants were used for logging in Thailand to make money. Today, that is illegal and elephants are used for making money through tourism.

The two big uses today are street begging, and entertainment shows. Street begging occurs on the busy city roads of Bangkok and Chiang Mai, where mahouts (the person in charge of the elephant) take the elephant around and ask for money to feed it. Entertainment shows are where the elephant helps mahouts get money by performing tricks such as painting, jumping over human beings, or even riding bicycles. Initially, it seems like there are no issues with these uses. But street begging actually occurs on asphalt, which burns the elephant’s feet in the heat of the Thailand sun. It also takes the elephants away from the forest, where the food they actually need to eat is! Elephants spend most of their days eating, so spending time anywhere other than the forest is really dangerous for them.

Entertainment shows are where most people get dragged into the elephant tourism industry in Thailand and other countries in Asia. There are many different forms of this. One is literally just shows where they do tricks, which are harmful because although the elephants look happy while doing it, in reality they know how to do the tricks because of much abusive training. They can often be left without food or water for days when they don’t listen, or hit to perform better. The reason elephants can do such good tricks is because they are such smart, caring, human - like animals. Because of this, it’s even more important to let them roam free, instead of perform tricks. No one is arguing that them painting, riding bikes, etc isn’t cute - no matter what the eles do, they always are adorable. If they did these actions naturally, no one would have a problem with it! The problem is what we don’t see, behind the scenes. They don’t perform these tricks naturally, and to do them, the elephant gets abused.

Lastly, the most tempting for most tourists - riding camps. Everyone wants that cliche instagram picture of them riding an elephant when they go to Thailand. I agree - it would be pretty cool to ride elephants, if it didn’t hurt them. How can it hurt them? It seems like they’re so big, and can carry so much weight! Unfortunately, the way an Asian elephant’s spine is curved makes it really painful for them to carry weight on their back, even just the weight of an average sized person! They can actually carry the most weight on their necks, but even that isn’t preferable.

The mahouts love their elephants, but will take them wherever will make money for their families. While they’d love to keep their elephants in the forest to roam free, it takes everyday people like you and me visiting ethical programs while vacationing, instead of riding camps or shows.

While you won’t get to ride them in these places, you’ll get to interact with them naturally, as elephants should. They are really gentle and loving creatures. I promise, it’s much more rewarding to play with a happy elephant who’s treated right and therefore has it’s personality show through than a miserable elephant in a riding camp. The elephants I saw on my trip really create a bond with you. They love when you come to see them, using their trunks to play with you and wrap them around you for a hug. Even in these ethical programs, you still get to feed the elephants bananas and feed, so you can still get your cute Instagram photo.

You also can do health checks on the elephant, and record their behavior. At the end of the day, you can go home knowing you’ve spent your money towards something that helps elephants be healthy and happy, rather than hurting them. Like I said at the beginning, there’s nothing wrong with being uneducated and riding an elephant - I myself have done that as well. But now you know, and can spread the word to anyone else.

If you hear of someone going to Thailand or anywhere else with Asian elephants, make sure to inform them ahead of time about all the great help they can be, rather than hurting elephants. At the end of the day, it’s up to you to decide: am I going to be an elephant friend, or foe? I think we all know what the right decision is.

Report this Content
This article has not been reviewed by Odyssey HQ and solely reflects the ideas and opinions of the creator.
a man and a woman sitting on the beach in front of the sunset

Whether you met your new love interest online, through mutual friends, or another way entirely, you'll definitely want to know what you're getting into. I mean, really, what's the point in entering a relationship with someone if you don't know whether or not you're compatible on a very basic level?

Consider these 21 questions to ask in the talking stage when getting to know that new guy or girl you just started talking to:

Keep Reading...Show less
Lifestyle

Challah vs. Easter Bread: A Delicious Dilemma

Is there really such a difference in Challah bread or Easter Bread?

16339
loaves of challah and easter bread stacked up aside each other, an abundance of food in baskets
StableDiffusion

Ever since I could remember, it was a treat to receive Easter Bread made by my grandmother. We would only have it once a year and the wait was excruciating. Now that my grandmother has gotten older, she has stopped baking a lot of her recipes that require a lot of hand usage--her traditional Italian baking means no machines. So for the past few years, I have missed enjoying my Easter Bread.

Keep Reading...Show less
Adulting

Unlocking Lake People's Secrets: 15 Must-Knows!

There's no other place you'd rather be in the summer.

945701
Group of joyful friends sitting in a boat
Haley Harvey

The people that spend their summers at the lake are a unique group of people.

Whether you grew up going to the lake, have only recently started going, or have only been once or twice, you know it takes a certain kind of person to be a lake person. To the long-time lake people, the lake holds a special place in your heart, no matter how dirty the water may look.

Keep Reading...Show less
Student Life

Top 10 Reasons My School Rocks!

Why I Chose a Small School Over a Big University.

122531
man in black long sleeve shirt and black pants walking on white concrete pathway

I was asked so many times why I wanted to go to a small school when a big university is so much better. Don't get me wrong, I'm sure a big university is great but I absolutely love going to a small school. I know that I miss out on big sporting events and having people actually know where it is. I can't even count how many times I've been asked where it is and I know they won't know so I just say "somewhere in the middle of Wisconsin." But, I get to know most people at my school and I know my professors very well. Not to mention, being able to walk to the other side of campus in 5 minutes at a casual walking pace. I am so happy I made the decision to go to school where I did. I love my school and these are just a few reasons why.

Keep Reading...Show less
Lots of people sat on the cinema wearing 3D glasses
Pinterest

Ever wonder what your friend meant when they started babbling about you taking their stapler? Or how whenever you ask your friend for a favor they respond with "As You Wish?" Are you looking for new and creative ways to insult your friends?

Well, look no further. Here is a list of 70 of the most quotable movies of all time. Here you will find answers to your questions along with a multitude of other things such as; new insults for your friends, interesting characters, fantastic story lines, and of course quotes to log into your mind for future use.

Keep Reading...Show less

Subscribe to Our Newsletter

Facebook Comments