Elephant-riding in Thailand - should it be banned ?

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Advocatus Diaboli
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Re: Elephant-riding in Thailand - should it be banned ?

Post by Advocatus Diaboli »

Kuroneko wrote:isolated incidents, and nowhere near fatalaties from dogs for example. 4.5 – 4.7 million Americans are bitten by dogs every year, and last year 32 people died as a result of the bites,
This is because you have about 73 million dogs in the U.S. and hardly any elephants ;)
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Re: Elephant-riding in Thailand - should it be banned ?

Post by Jamie_Lambo »

deffo should be banned free them all in to the wild :P
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Re: Elephant-riding in Thailand - should it be banned ?

Post by Anchor Moy »

British tourist killed by mad elephant while elephant-riding on Koh Samui. His daughter is being treated for injuries.Different versions of why the elephant became mad. In the Thai news it is suggested that the man baited the elephant with a banana.
http://www.samuitimes.com/tourist-kille ... koh-samui/
This is refuted by the daughter in the DT, and by-standers report that the elephant was hit a number of times with a metal hook by the mahout before attacking the mahout and the male tourist : http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/ ... iland.html

Whatever the reason, RIP and sympathy to the family.

However, elephant-riding goes on, people get killed from time to time, and tourists obviously still think this is a great thing to do.
Not sure about the real statistics, but this is at least the 3rd reported case of an elephant killing someone during an elephant ride in Thailand in the past year. How many is too many ?
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Re: Elephant-riding in Thailand - should it be banned ?

Post by phuketrichard »

i pass them on the road just abut everyday here now that its high season

Yes How many is to many?

today 2 tourist were run over and seriously injured while diving, by a speedboat
Tigers have injured a few this year
Dozens die each year drowning
tens of thousands die on the road

I am not saying its right keeping them in captivity but many Mahouts truly love their elephants an need to feed them an there is just no work
The problem i have seen is they work the females when they are in heat and that causes trouble

ban them? i'd say no, make sure there is more control YES
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Re: Elephant-riding in Thailand - should it be banned ?

Post by Jamie_Lambo »

im probably one of the only persons to have been to thailand like 13+ times and never ridden an elephant, doesnt appeal to me tbh, never had my photo taken with one of them drugged up tigers either...
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Re: Elephant-riding in Thailand - should it be banned ?

Post by TheGrinchSR »

Elephants have been domesticated in Thailand for centuries now. It's the same as riding a horse - and yes, horses die in the course of being ridden and yes, people die riding horses (in fact horse riding is noted for being more dangerous than most illegal drug consumption).

Just because elephants are "unique" to Western eyes doesn't make them any more special than a horse or a dog. Though, I admit finding an elephant steak remains more challenging than finding horse or dog meat does.
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Re: Elephant-riding in Thailand - should it be banned ?

Post by Jamie_Lambo »

TheGrinchSR wrote:Elephants have been domesticated in Thailand for centuries now. It's the same as riding a horse - and yes, horses die in the course of being ridden and yes, people die riding horses (in fact horse riding is noted for being more dangerous than most illegal drug consumption).

Just because elephants are "unique" to Western eyes doesn't make them any more special than a horse or a dog. Though, I admit finding an elephant steak remains more challenging than finding horse or dog meat does.
i dont have much desire to ride a horse either to be honest.... a dinosaur maybe... or a dragon, then sure, saddle me up :dragonchase:
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Re: Elephant-riding in Thailand - should it be banned ?

Post by Anchor Moy »

"Begging" elephant strikes back. This article is almost 3 years old now, but it tells the same story of a frustrated elephant who doesn't mix well with tourists...Nice lady trying to do a good deed gets gored to death.

05 March 2013 :: 15:03:24 pm 72626
Crazed Elephant Kills Thai Wife On Rayong Beach
A 56-year-old Thai wife of a farang was fatally gored by a 2-year-old elephant on Maerampung beach. She was buying sugar cane to feed the elephant when it attacked her. The mahout said the hot weather had crazed the normally docile beast. The mahout and the elephant’s owner will be prosecuted by police.

RAYONG – March 4, 2013 [Pattaya Daily News]; At 5:30 p.m., a report of an elephant killing a Thai female tourist was received by Pol. Lt. Capt. Thawatch Norsingha, Muangrayong police station, Rayong.

Rescuers from Sawangpornkusol foundation Rayong reported that a 2-year-old elephant went insane and used its tusk to gore a Thai tourist on Maerampung beach. The victim was severely injured and died in Rayong hospital.

Police officers arriving at the scene found the elephant, named Plai Boonchoo, 2 years old, was being chained on his front legs in Khaosap temple, Pae, Muang. The elephant was acting insane, whining loudly all the time and shocking tourists, who quickly fled because they were afraid the elephant would kill more people.

Officers went to the hospital emergency room to check on the victim, and discovered she had died from her injuries. Her collarbones were broken, and her lungs had been pierced, with blood shed inside her rib cage area. The victim was identified as Mrs. Sairung Kraja, 56 years old. Standing sadly near her body was her husband, Mr. Helmut Schoeler , 63 years old, nationality German.

Mr. Helmut told police that he and his wife were staying at the Rayong beach hotel on Maerampueng beach. He brought his wife to the beach, and they saw the mahout who came along with the elephant to beg for food, and was selling the sugar cane to feed the animal.

His wife who was always generous, went to the elephant. She was taking money from her purse to pay for the sugar cane to feed him. But the elephant stabbed her with its tusk, and she fell to the ground. The elephant then used its trunk to lift her up, and stabbed her several times with its tusk, in front of many horrified tourists.

Police questioned the mahout, identified as Mr. Thongjan Malignam, 26 years old, living in Krapo, Tatoom, Surin. He told police that he brought Plaiboonchoo to Maerampueng beach nearly every day to wander to sell sugar cane to Thai and foreign tourists.

Mr. Thongjan said this had never happened before with Plaiboonchoo, who was always cute and kind, and never hurt anyone. But today was too hot, and the elephant got annoyed and acted untamed, and he did not play with tourists like before.

Police also questioned the elephant’s owner, identified as Mr. Santawee Boonklao, 27 years old. He said the elephant was always sweet, and had never acted violently. He brought the big beast to the beach to wander to beg for food every day, and it was always fine.

Pol. Lt. Capt. Thawatch Norsingha said both Mr. Thongjan and Mr. Santawee will be prosecuted on charges of bringing an elephant to wander in public and causing someone’s death.
[Pattaya Daily News link removed because the site no longer exists.]
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Re: Elephant-riding in Thailand - should it be banned ?

Post by Anchor Moy »

Should change the name of the thread to "Another death by elephant in Thailand" - I'm making a collection - this one was in Chiang Mai 2 days ago:
http://www.chiangmaicitylife.com/news/e ... g-mai-zoo/
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Re: Elephant-riding in Thailand - should it be banned ?

Post by ot mien kampf »

Ed Hammer wrote:No, unless they restart using elephants for timber extraction,they would have no value otherwise.How much are you willing to pay to feed them each year?
Yep. You'd find a lot of neglected and dead elephants if the leftist whining brigade came and took away their monetary value. :facepalm:

No doubt they'll organize a boycott and invoke the "colonial undertones" of white people riding elephants with brown mahouts and it will be banned, though.
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