Responsible Travel - Thailand - page 1519

Thailand's tourism industry, which varies from circus-like shows to elephant camps giv-
ing rides to tourists. Other elephant encounters include mahout-training schools, while
sanctuaries and rescue centres provide modest retirement homes to animals that can no
longer work and are no longer profitable for their owners.
Working elephants have a career of about 50 years and are trained at a young age by
two mahouts, usually a father-and-son team, who can see the animal through its lifetime.
Thai law requires that elephants be retired and released into the wild at age 61. They often
live for 80 years or more. It costs about 30,000B (US$1000) per month to provide a com-
fortable living standard for an elephant; this is equivalent to the salary of Thailand's upper
middle class. It is an expensive proposition to provide a comfortable life for an elephant,
and the welfare standards within the tourism industry are not standardised or subject to
government regulations. It is up to the conscientious consumer to encourage the industry
to make safe working conditions for elephants the norm, not the exception. For more on
this issue, see The Elephant Debate boxed text in the Chiang Mai chapter.
Here are some questions to ask the elephant camps to make sure you've chosen a well-
run operation.
» Does the camp employ a veterinarian? Good camps keep their elephants under regular medical supervision.
» What is its policy on procuring new elephants? Some camps buy illegally caught wild elephants with forged regis-
tration so they appear to be born in captivity.
» How many hours per day do the elephants work? A brisk-paced walk for about four hours per day (with breaks for
eating and drinking) is considered adequate exercise.
» How many adults do the elephants carry? An elephant can carry a maximum of 150kg (330lb) on its back, plus a
mahout on its neck. Tally up you and your partner's combined weight and request a separate elephant if you tip the
scales.
» Are the elephants kept in a shady spot near fresh water and a food source? What do they eat? A balanced diet in-
cludes a mixture of fruit, grasses, bamboo and pineapple shoots.
» Do the elephants have noticeable wounds? This is often a sign of mistreatment.
» What kind of a seat is used for elephant riding? Wooden seats, custom-made to fit the elephant's back, cause less
irritation and stress on the animal.
» What is the camp's birth rate? Happy elephants have babies.