Elephant safaris, behind the scenes

ashakasha

Just an FYI for those considering elephant safaris.

My husband and I choose not to support exploitation of animals, when possible, so we haven't done the elephant or camel safaris.

While in Kerala, when we explained this, our home-stay operator insisted on taking us to see how well his friends treat their elephants. We drove way out to a village where everyone owned elephants...I mean EVERYONE.

When we arrived, we were taken immediately to see the males who were being "saddled" for rides. They seemed well enough...aside from getting poked by that sharp prodder of sorts. But we noticed another pen a bit in the forest and asked to see those elephants.

Reluctantly they took us over to the small enclosure where a 2 month elephant and his mother were kept. The baby was allowed to move about freely, but the mother was chained by one leg and could not move but a couple feet forward or backward. She just kept rocking, and you could see where the chain had rubbed scars in her ankle.

I assumed they let her off the chain in the evening to move about and eat, and hoped for confirmation of this. They said, "Oh no!!"- and explained that if they let her off she would break down the fence and run with the baby.

I wonder how long she has stood in that spot (they explained that she is so angry and violent that they must throw her food to her)- and how much longer she will remain, miserable, in that spot.

Please don't support this. Use your own feet- we did, and we got to see WILD elephants up close in the jungle.

birds

Excellent post!!

Thanks for pointing this out and your actions.

NowInBangalore

The whole situation is really not that simple.
We were in the forests of Karnataka, no elephant rides, just jeep safari to spot wild elephants and other animals. Some of the wild animals had bullet marks on them from poachers. When guides spot that, they radio the forest officials who try to take care of the wounds.
The Govt therefore feels that domesticating some of the elephants, especially the rougue ones, will protect their lives. Due to declining habitats, sometimes elephants go on a rampage, toatlly destroying crops, thus incurring the villagers' wrath, who come after the elephants to kill them. The Govt arranges for capturing these wild elephants, and then train them, which is not a cruelty-free affair, I am sure.
Once trained, the elephants need to be worked, just to give them some excercise. The trusted ones are let go during the day and night into the jungle, with chains around their front feet. Twice a day, the mahout goes into the forest to search for these elephants, tracking the trail left behind by the chains, brings the elephants into the park for feeding special foods, bathe the elephants, check for injuries (that they may get if they get into fights with the wild ones), and then let them wander again into the forests.

It is probably the lesser of the two evils.

ashakasha

The mahouts at the elephant village I visited said that "village elephants" are attacked by wild elephants when they confront them in the forest.

Why not err on the side of compassion and avoid having a hand (or ass, in this case) in the matter?

Anything the indian government has a hand in is bound to be stinky. Just consider "Project Tiger"-

livinhimalayas

This is quite true and happens to all species of animals. The humans have encroached on animal habitats. When animals come near human habitation they are mauled and killed. I remember a TV covrage of a wild bear killing in Kashmir a few months ago it was particularly goary. This is no excuse for domesticating elephants. If that were true then the government should be thinking about ways of domesticating other animals like leopards, bears, wild boars, too. These are the animals that are killed more often by villagers than one would believe.
Fact is elephants are work animals and generate an income as well as pay for their upkeep, hence they are an attractive business proposition and aluable assets that have to be locked up in chains.

bagpuss34

Im not saying that i agree with this what so ever - or the treatment of a wild, beautiful and intelligent animal ... but just to chuck something out there b4 we all go pointing fingers at peoples culture and way of life - and i think to play devils advocate really .... we ride and keep horses - we use them for work, and we keep them in paddocks and stables, and put bits of metal in their mouths to control them, and hit them with crops. This isnt natural to a horse, as an elephants being used for work isnt ... but what makes one more fairer than the other? nothing...

Just so you know i ride horses, have owned horses, and have ridden camels and elephants...

Elephants are how some indians do business and make money - same as we used horses for the same, old taxi's, milk carts, brick works, transporting flour - all back in the day... but just the same.....

Discuss ;-D

wabat

Hardly a very positive comment - or useful contribution ..

livinhimalayas

No argument there at all. There are places in the world where the economy still depends on mules and horses as the sole means of transport of goods and people. Not to forget the ox which are also used as work animals. The thing is about our own sensibilities. Since I have never seen a wild horse in my life but seen plenty of wild elephants I feel more for an animal that i believe would be happier in the wild. Can;t say the same for a horse or a mule or a donkey as I am sure they will find it difficult to survive in the wild and may take several generations for these to adapt to it. The horses and other pack animals are born in captivity, but this is not always true for elephants.

bagpuss34

We have wild horses in the UK, especially in wales, new forest ponies... there fine just grazing away ... ;-D

livinhimalayas

I will have to visit Wales to see them I suppose. But then they don't have many predators there either do they?

PeakXV

I think that everywhere in the world there are examples of treatment to animals ranging from poor to excellent. To suggest that all elephants from Kerala to Kaziranga are treated or cared for the in same manner based on one fleeting observation ..... might be a tad near-sighted at best, IMO.

Ultimately, I believe we're all intelligent enough to make our own decisions on a case to case basis.

__________________
What lies behind us and what lies ahead of us are tiny matters compared to what lives within us.
~ Oliver Wendell Holmes

Don't go to India ~ Pre-trip Warnings & Misconceptions?

crvlvr

the US is one of the few places where a Vice President can go out bird hunting and kill migratory birds -- these are birds that make a long journey to escape the cold approaching winter -- and a Vice President candidate can go wolf and moose hunting and be applauded it for it. Apparently, they've killed too many moose in Alaska, so there is not enough left for hunting - especially with the wolves hunting them too. So let's get the wolves before they get the moose is the logic here.

I'd like to see how the American's react if the Indians came and told them to stop living "their way of life".

I am not defending any kind of cruelty against animals. But, it would be nice if posters educated themselves before making allegations.

Trust me, if an elephant was really pissed off, a mahaut with a poker is no match for it. BTW, I'd like to know if the OP saw any people with guns aimed at the elephant in case of "trouble".

David Gordon

Actually, the US is one of the only places a VP can go hunting to kill migratory birds -- shoot a laywer and not get in trouble

I think, like anything, it is important to be a thoughtful. As we head to India in the next few weeks with our 9 & 10 year old, the purpose of the visit is to let them see and decide for themselves what is better, worse, different, inspiring, funny, etc. as it will lead to their growth as people.

In posts like this, we get in trouble when they tell people what to do or what to think, no matter how good intentioned.


For me, I appreciate the information & perspective and will decide for myself what I'm comfortable with. As a side, I am not a VP therefore, I would get into trouble for shooting a laywer or anyone for that matter.