Following years of hardship and misery, dozens of elephants at the Maesa elephant camp in Thailand have been freed from the burden of carrying heavy wooden and metal chairs on their backs.
With coronavirus having wiped out the tourist trade, the 78 elephants at the camp in Chiang Mai have finally been set free after having been forced to give daily rides to tourists in the burning heat for years.
Elephant rides are completely unnecessary and cause immense suffering to the animals, who are often prodded with bullhooks and develop lasting physical complications due to the relentless work they are made to do, sometimes working 18 or more hours a day.
The elephants at Maesa elephant camp before they were set free from their burden of carrying tourists in the blazing heat (Image Credit: Maesa elephant camp)
This “tourist activity” has been going on for 44 years at the camp, but now, the Thai Government has ordered it to stop due to the COVID-19 crisis.
Thankfully the change will not be temporary, and the elephants are now allowed to walk freely around the camp. The focus of the business has supposedly changed too, according to camp director Anchalee Kalampichit, who says it will become a place for visitors to simply observe and learn about the majestic mammals.
“We are not planning to put the seat supports back on the elephants,” Kalampichit said, “even if we can operate again. We want to change the style of the place and find more natural ways that the public can enjoy the elephants. We will welcome tourists to enjoy learning about the elephants’ ways of life naturally instead of using them to entertain the tourists.”
Unfortunately, although these elephants have finally been freed, their future is uncertain.
“The cost for taking care of the 78 elephants and 300 staff is five million THB ($160,000) per month,” says Kalampichit. “So for now, we have to bear that expense without income from tourists.”
With hundreds of other elephant camps shut down or facing imminent closure, animals in some areas are being chained up and left without enough food due to lack of funds, according to a report in The Daily Mail. There are concerns that the elephants from these now-defunct camps will starve, be forced into the illegal logging trade, or eventually be sold to zoos.
This goes to show that without the support of tourists, the elephant entertainment industry across the globe will fail, as these facilities cannot exist without our revenue. People have more power than ever to encourage the entire world to end elephant exploitation for good and get these innocent creatures transferred to sanctuaries that can provide the care they deserve.
I’ve received this twice. Again, I ask why do you start out with a great headline of hope about ending the tourist elephant rides, only to degrade to the ultimate inhumanity of a life starving in chains because there are no tourists to support their care and feeding? Please, don’t do that anymore. Give us solutions for continuing with hope for their ultimate relocation to an accredited sanctuary that will not chain or starve them, nor put them up for tourism opportunities.
Let’s protect the ones that have no choice
This dumb practice of so called Elephant rides would have been stopped long ago. These dumb people are using animals as their Slaves & Prisoners. Shame on those brainless people who have no empathy on others to think how much sufferings these defenseless animals undergo silently. May be something good has come out of and among this mass disaster. Let the Elephants be elephants. THEY ARE NOT YOUR SERVANTS OR SLAVES. Allow them to live a life with freedom which they were being born into.
Why don’t you give us suggestions or hope for these elephants being sent to a sanctuary? You start out with good news, but then tell us how worse the elephants will fare without tourists. What is the solution and how do we implement saving them from starting in chains! Surely with all the wildlife organizations and rescue teams world wide, there must be a way.
Why don’t you give us suggestions or hope for these elephants being sent to a sanctuary? You start out with good news, but then tell us how worse the elephants will fare without tourists. What is the solution and how do we implement saving them from starting in chains! Surely with all the wildlife organizations and rescue teams world wide, there must be a way.
Cultures from 3rd world countries are continuing in the US.
Those that do this illegal practice should be arrested, then appropriately deported .
How can we help.
people must learn to admire them from the ground, not on their backs.
The Maesa elephants need to be moved to sanctuaries as soon as possible; it is the sole responsibility of the Thai Government to oversee their freedom after they have been enslaved for decades.
Good for the elephants. They deserve the freedom.The tourism industry needs to understand that elephants have need to be free.
this great news, but yes, without a specific plan in place, what happens to them next can either be beautiful or horrible.
Once the Tourist industry returns, you will then get your revenue — hopefully, you will receive even more funds than before, due to the NEW tourist attraction whereby you do NOT abuse and exploit Elephants — remember, COVID19 came about because of abuse & exploitation of Animals — I hope we are learning our lesson and start caring for and respecting our Elephants — in the meantime, you MUST set up Fundraisers — whether via Internet, and/or some other way, like engaging international Animal organizations who continuously receive donations for projects exactly like yours — you MUST get the revenue to stay afloat — your suggestion, “to tie up Elephants and feed them little food,” is NOT good — it is cruel, depraved and unconscionable — and, MUST NEVER BE — allow Elephants to live freely, as they’re presently doing, allow them to feed normally; if you can cut back a little on food, this may be a good idea, as long as you do NOT do them harm — do NOT ABANDON these beautiful, vulnerable, majestic Elephants — We OWE them — at ALL costs.
Well let us hope that this ban will be forever not just while the virus is around. Why does everyone have to exploit animals in sport and the tourist market ?? Why do tourists feel the need to ride an elephant ?? This is not natural behaviour. Rather enjoy these wonderful animals for what they are, not for what you can gain from them.
Animals deserve a life of love and kindness.
Everyone should stop building over these beautiful creatures niche…..and take care of them
Yay for ele”s!!!!!!!
Beautiful babies!
Did it really have to take a deadly virus like this and the loss of tourism for these majestic and humble animals to be set free? No animal or human being should be forced into slavery in any manner. Leave God‘s animals alone and worry about your own mortality.
Lets hope the freedom of the elephants continue and that they are NOT forced into giving tourists rides again in the future. I’m sure most tourists would now prefer to these majestic animals behaving naturally and free, I know I would and I’m sure many other people would consider the same. Obviously these elephants have been severely abused, tormented, tortured and ill-treated in the past so its now time to put right all the wrongs that have been inflicted onto these innocent animals, and let them enjoy ‘retirement’ from man’s inhumanity towards them.
It is time that the Thai government compensated these animals that were over worked, poorly treated and underfed by the owners. It is very good that they have been set free. But the government must do its duty to see that they are well looked after and fed properly.
Move these elephants to a sanctuary.
They will not be sold to zoos because CITES put a stop to that. They need to go to a sanctuary or set free to live a natural life as intended. They will probably still be chained up at this camp and they will still be ruled and bossed around with the bull hook. The only freedom the elephants have gained is not carting tourists around
I cannot believe these people has a sudden change of heart. Once the coronavirus pandemic is over, elephants will be confined once again. Mark my word.
HOW WONDERFUL!!!!!
Redd elefantene
This pandemic is doing the natural world sa lot of good. The earth and animals are benefiting greatly from this. May we learn our messin from this.
Gee who know that a pandemic could clean the air, free elephants, empty shelters, close wet markets and dozens of other things made better. While covid19 is bad for humans everything else on the earth is made better. Whether it’s God, nature, the cosmos it’s a good thing. While it’s sad humans have to die I hope it’s a wake up call that we need to treat this living planet better or we humans could all die in the next human caused pandemic.
Yes, Tamara, you are so right. Also another very, very good thing is lots of bulls have been saved in Spain – NO bull fights. yaaah.
One can only wonder if their traumatic lives will stay with them forever. But at least now they are free and roaming wherever they want and without the use of bullhocks
SET the ELEPHANTS FREE FOREVER!!
Very thankful for anything that helps to improve conditions for these poor elephants.
the elephants need to be in a preserve where they can forage on their own like they did before they were taken and enslaved
Those who have allowed this to happen for the last 44 years nee to Work it out