Sumunabanda, chief mahout at Pinnawala elephant orphanage in Sri Lanka.

Mr K.G. Sumanabanda is a four generation Sri Lankan mahout, who was chief mahout at the Pinnawala elephant orphanage (පින්නවල අලි අනාථාගාරය) since he was transfered there from Colombo Zoo in Dehivela Gardens in 1981 until 2010.

I met Sumanabanda first time back in 1977, when I, as 17 year old teenager spend four months "studying" working with elephants on Sri Lanka. I only remember a few smaller ones from that time, but I didnt stay long, I was on the way back from Kandy to Udugama, (north of the town Galle) where the Director Nelson Wickramaratne was generously letting me stay for free, so I could see the Playwood Corporation elephants in work every day..

We met again at the end of January 2012, when I during some weeks assisted Prague Zoo selecting two new elephants for import from Pinnawala, Now both females are mothers in Prague Zoo.

I spent two days with him, chattiing about elephants in his house in Hasthiraja Niwasa, Kotagama, Rambukkana, which is near the Pinnawala Sanctuary. He was cheerful and inspired by the visit, and showed a lot of old photos, but also hiding his greeve over not working in Pinnawala anymore

Its always so sad to see previous heroes being pulled down, after serving many years, Ive seen it several zoos in Europe. And his wife was also suffering from breast cancer. 

We also went to see a young bull he was training in the neighbour village.

Ex Chief Mahout at Pinnawala Elephant Orphanage in Sri Lanka, Mr K. G. Sumanabanda, (He now also are represented on elephant people in the Elephant Database) and myself in Kegalle, Sri Lanka 2012

It came out as an interview, I had many questions and Sumanabanda very politelly gave me insight in his life, assisted by his daughter Chandani Sumanabanda, famous from the film by Arne Birkenstock:, Chandani: The Daughter of the Elephant Whisperer (88 mins, 2010). 

Picture from the film Chandani: The Daughter of the Elephant Whisperer by Arne Birkenstock

Almost 10 years later, here are some notes from our meeting.

Sumanabanda was born 1958, son of wellknown Sri Lankan mahout Punchi Apuhami, and twelve years old, he started to help his father tend the families three elephants, Raja, Mudiyansee, and Menika.

The bull Mudiyanse, K.G. Samunabanda left, and his father Punchi Apuhami, 1984. Photo © Wayne Jackson, Canada.

The bull Mudiyanse, Samunabanda left, and his grandmothers brother Rambanda, 1984. Photo Wayne Jackson, Canada.

In 1978 Samunabanda started to work as mahout at Sri Lanka National Zoological Gardens (Dehiwela Zoo) in Colombo, under the late director Lyn de Alwis.

In 1981 Samunabanda was transfered from Dehivela Gardens to Pinnawela elephant orphanage where he, together with two assistants, became responsible for their 13 elephants.

(Photo from the book les animaux sauvages ; l'éléphant) The Pinnawela herd and chief mahout K.G. Sumanabanda in 1981. Not one single hotel, and only palm trees along the river. The elephants on the picture are 13;  Vijaya, Neela, Hema, Mathalee, Randivi, Mahaweli, Kumari, Diula, Anuscha, Kadira, Komali, Weera (later Kandula I at the army camp), and Jadura. On the picture above is not one single hotel, and only palm trees along the river Maha Oya.

Is there any risks when Zoos have public Facebook pages?

Lately, I have noticed that Zoos Facebook Pages slowly more and more are taking over Zoos educational role. While Zoos in the past would be fairly restricted to which information they passed on to public, the Zoos Facebook pages is on its way of becoming a separate world, often with women in charge, and where different feministic attitudes are dominating almost every story, advocating feminism, without officially declaring this.

Zoos were in the past regarded as scientific institutions, and supposed to deliver unbiased information, with a scientific approach. This is slowly changing when the zoos adapt to the main stream, and create their Facebook pages. It seems often with a female editor, and probably with a journalist background, rather than being a zookeeper or biologist. 

Meanwhile, zookeepers are not so often men anymore, as they were in the past, when they were silent cleaners of cages and feeders of animals,  Today, we see the new zookeeper taking parts of films, where they speak, almost professionally, about their animals. And it seems some 95% of them are women. 

They tell stories for other women, and become role models, and getting famous. You dont see them carry faeces, bales of hay, or tons of fish from a lorry into a freezer any longer. They have become movie stars. And the animals they care for, has become more and more antropomorfistic.

Wikipedia describes Anthropomorphism as: 

The attribution of human traits, emotions, or intentions to non-human entities. It is considered to be an innate tendency of human psychology.

Personification is the related attribution of human form and characteristics to abstract concepts such as nations, emotions, and natural forces, such as seasons and weather.  

Both have ancient roots as storytelling and artistic devices, and most cultures have traditional fables with anthropomorphized animals as characters. People have also routinely attributed human emotions and behavioral traits to wild as well as domesticated animals

The latest example is about the elephant Mala in Parc Paradisio. Mala is a female Asian elephant,  57 years old, living in Parc Paradisio in Belgium. Mala was born 1964, probably in India, because she was imported in 1966 to Europe by animal trader George Munro, who bought his elephants India, mostly on the Sonepur Cattle Fair, or in Assam, and shipped them to Europe out from the Port of Calcutta.

Munro sold the elephant to Carl Hagenbecks Tierpark in Stellingen outside Hamburg in Germany, and somewhere along the road she got the name "Mala" which is Singhalese  for "flower", but as far as I know, she has zero connection to Sri Lanka, called Ceylon in 1966.

In March/April 1984 she became one of the last victims of the disease Elephant Smallpox,  but luckily survived, under veterinarian supervision of Hagenbecks co-owner and director Claus Hagenbeck from the sixth generation of the private owners of the zoo, established in 1907.

Mala lived most of her life in Hamburg, and I met Mala already in 1985 during my practise in Hagenbecks Tierpark. Mala was very stabile, an excellent elephant in regard of training, and she was one of the best during the afternoons, when some 5-6 elephants were brought out from enclosure to the ramps, where children could ride on Mala in saddles.

Mala was sold in July 2012 to Parc Paradisio in Belgium , where she has spent her last nine years under the nickname Brugelette.

Mala was succesfully integrated in Paradisio, and it seems that she took the leading position in the herd 

Yesterday was reported on Facebook article about Mala in Zoo Pairi Daiza (Parc Paradisio) that Mala has colic, and hundreds of comments on the zoos Facebook has put the attention to Mala. People upload pictures with candles, pray for her recover etc, as if she was a human relative or a person they had a close social connection to.

No shadow over the Parc Paradisio Zoo, its an excellent Zoo and just an example I choose to take when analyzing when a Zoos information becomes public on Facebook, and anyone can make comments.

What struck me was that theres less focus on Elephant colic medical remedies, pathology and more individual focus on Mala as a symbol of something, which is difficult to describe.

The comments made by the public, with added graphics, like ballons, candles, etc, show a somewhat juvenile pattern, and poor Malas situation, becomes an emotional tragedy where the Facebook visitors express their love and care for Mala, although most of them never met her. And most peoples reference nowadays are from cats and dogs kept in human homes, actually cared for and treated as babies, and viewed as semi-members of the human family by their owners.  

For some reason the public often apply the same view on animals in zoo or at farm, as if they were personals in a human social environment. 

This gone so far, that a a team of lawyers requested a writ of habeas corpus – a claim of unlawful detention on the elephant Happys behalf in an effort to have her rehomed. But on December 17 2020, an appeals court in New York denied the claim. Their reasoning was simple – Happy cannot claim legally enforceable rights under existing law. This is because Happy is an elephant.

Of course its sad if Mala has colic. But colic is seldom lethal for elephants. Therefore the Facebook article about her colic made me focus more on peoples reactions, and after seeing all "get well soon" and "Mala we love you" graphics, as well as funeral candles, I became a bit puzzled. And I dont think anyone who express their love and care for Mala, ever met her.  A fast analyze gives an indication that 95% of comments were written by women.

Somehow, I get the feeling that her condition becomes commercialized, and that persons profit on her destiny in a way, where they express emotions and send her their greetings.

But Mala will never see or read those greetings, or watch all ballons and candles. Shes got pain in her stomach, thats all she knows. And she dont know all those people that "love" her, and pray for her. She probably wouldn't care less, if she saw pictures of balloons and candles.

The entire Facebook article about Mala reflects very much how Zoos informational role is rapidly undergoing changes, and where the Zoos educational websites becomes a secondary thing, which few people read, while their Facebook section takes over. In a very different way. Theres indications that Zoos Facebook pages can become a pseudo-world, where the public may take over, and the Zoos may loose control over how their information is received, spread and politically transformed, and where their animals become "victims" of over-emotional reactions, Anthropomorphism and subjects of ignorance, rather as parts of a zoos biology education program. I cant stop thinking that its a high risk of those Zoo Facebook Pages gets changed into what is nwdays referred to as "emotional porn"

Mala is not alone, for every week and month during the last year, Zoos Facebook sections are starting to move in a new direction, which is new to me, where the journalistic approach replace science and unbiased biology information. "Likes" seem to be the factor that rule how and what the Zoo should write on Facebook.

I see this as a part of development that started in the 60s, and became more formalized in the 70s, it has a history, it started to become more extreme with the film Solo, by Baron Hugo van Lawick and his then pretty young wife, Jane Godal. Hugo van Lawicks film about Solo called "Wild Dogs Tale - The story of a lonely African wild dog. (Or, the story of Solo, a lonely African wild dog that has befriended a number of jackals and hyenas in the Okavango Delta. Solo has helped the jackals raise their pups as if they were her own...)

Until then most nature films were more like documentations, with the exemption of Disney productions, where Disney nature films would create "stories" where some animals were challenged with problems, where the viewers became sad and cried and the public were supposed to identify with them and the story. Most Disney nature films had a happy ending, and in the end the poor animals always survived so the viewers could feel happy again. 

Many Europeans in the 60s and 70s liked American films, but it was also also laughed at the weeping point when some would make coffee, and indulge in discussions about the film,until the "weeping" section was over. In fact, some in Europe actually felt embarrrassed, and  although absorbed by a film until this point, then being brought to reality when the emotion-porn took its crescendo, often half ways or 2/3:rds in the film. It became to much, for most of them, if they were not teeaager girls. The weeping sections could be referred to as "creamy" or "butter" and pathetic and made elderly men shake their heads while half the family was crying. But even more interestingly, women back in 50s and 60s, who often had grown up on farms, and experienced war, were more living in reality while they would even criticize the teenager women of being childish and melodramatic.

This was back in the time when many Europeans regarded a lot of American films as over-emotional, and we never understood how people could enjoy watching suffering, weeping people om film, or suffering animals wit their heads hanging down. It was a bit of the painting of the weeping child,  or "The crying Boy" by Spanish artist Giovanni Bragolin. that some people decorated the wall  in their living rooms with. Those different pictures is the subject of the article The Curse of the Crying Boy

It all began in the 1950s. A Spanish artist named Giovanni Bragolini made a series of paintings that depicted a young child crying. He sold those paintings to tourists as a reminder of the orphans of World War II. Oddly enough, people in England, especially young couples, grew fond of these paintings. Mass prints of the paintings were sold across the country.

Anyhow,  except for some Disney Nature  films  most nature films I saw until middle 70s were kind of educational, transfer the beauty and  reality of Nature.

The film about Solo would change this, although the film became criticized by biologists and zoologists. It was the obvious that a hunt on a sebra detailed VERY close, was performed by a chemical sedation, probably with Xylazine (commonly known as Rompune) of a sebra, so the hunt could be filmed very close, and the sebra could not escape, since it was obviously drugged. 

In the film, the camera man seem to sit on a Landrover, which follows the hunt only on meters distance, while the sebra with a light sedation, is fleeing from a pride of hunting lions, but the sebra just runs stupidly straight forward, and doesnt perform a natural fleeing behaviour, why Baron van Lawick could film the kill by the lions, which of course made a strong emotional impact on the viewer, 

MAYBE some semi-tame lions that would accept a running Landrover meters from their hunt were actually used in the film, since its hard to believe that a totally wild pride of Lions would perform a hunt, with a running LR in high speed some meters away, with a filming photographer...

Shortly after, the couple divorced, and Jane Godall became world famous as primate researcher. In her late life, she has become an animal rights activists, She is the former president of Advocates for Animals, and was involved in the termination of elephant keeping in Toronto Zoo, when she, regarded as "elephant specialist" reccommended sending their elephants to the Tuberculosis infected Elephant Sanctuary known as PAWS ARK 2000 in California 

This was of course not the best option, from a professional point of view, sending healthy elephants to a place where it was highly possible they they would be infected with a lethal infection disease.

But Animal Activists wrote:

Some of the most renowned and respected scientists — Cynthia Moss, Joyce Poole, Winnie Kiiru, Keith Lindsay and Dr. Jane Goodall — have recommended the PAWS ARK 2000 sanctuary to Toronto Zoo as a retirement home for the three African elephants, Thika, Toka and Iringa. Why does AZA consider their years of experience as unimportant, and continue to threaten Toronto Zoo with the horrors of lack of accreditation?

I described the Sanctuarys TB situation in my 2012 blog Tuberculosis in two U.S. elephant sanctuaries, after which PAWS threatened to sue me, see PAWS threatens to sue me? Heres the laywers letter.) 

Back to Solo:

 Solos story was probably a totally fictional story, when poor little Solo gets cast out by his pack, and even his mother doesnt care for him, and he almost died. The story was probably not true, but its rather likely the production of very much analyzed by the authors, what women and children would like.So, the starving Solo, whos mother rejecting him, became an animal "crying Boy" as the synopsis for the film.

In those days, such a way of manipulating animals for film making with chemical sedation, was a big NoNo, which was one of the reasons why the film was criticized. A second issue was that it didnt tell a true story, but was a created and fabricated story made to attract emotional people who didnt ask too many questions.

I remember when my teacher on Zookeepers school Mr Helmut Pinter, would criticize the sedation of an animal for a film production, and the young girls in the class would aggressively attack his arguments, and defend poor little Solo, and if I during later discussions claimed that Solo was probably 5-9 different African Wild Dog puppies filmed on different places, and all of them well cared by their mothers, the girls would get totally frustrated aggressive and tell me how stupid I was.

Back n 1974-1976 when I saw the film, we were two boys and sixteen girls in the zookeepers class. and when I came in discussions with my teenage female classmates about the film, was the first time, wen I became attacked for being "primitive", emotionally disturbed, perverted, extreme, stupid etc, and the young women would try to expel me from the social group, as "punishment" for my "bad behaviour".  And I would be criticized for not "loving animals". 

But at least they didnt threat to sue me, like  Pat Derby, owner of PAWS would later do, when the truth I wrote in Pat Derby (1942-2013) cofounder of Performing Animal Welfare Society (PAWS) disturbed her.

I would later see this even more extreme when the ARAS became more and more dominant in the 90s, and they share the general things, they are over emotional, anti reality, and believe that in every sitiuation that there is a "right" and "wrong" and the people who think "right" belong to a cultural elite. 

It seems today, rather many western women, too many, has become pretty infantile, naive, and over emotional AND they are dominating the social climate on many media sites with this, and the more distance they have to nature and animals, the more extreme they get. This development had a break through in late 70s and  early nineties, when whales, dolphins, and elephants during the "new-age" era became more popuar and filled with   Anthropomorphism and in the book "Elephant Memories" the author Cynthia Moss would label elephants as living in matriarchy. Soon  dolphins were also considered matriarchal, and super intelligent.

Many, especially women, would during the "New Age" identify with the New Age Animals. Tattos with dolphins, and investing money in "swimming with dolphins" trips, and when they returned home, telling most exciting stories, for their female friends, how they experienced bonding with the dolphins, or when they during the three minutes they put their hand on an elephants head think they became a friend of this elephant. 

Also, all bullshit of course, and if you told the women how male dolphins would rape female dolphins, OR younger males, they would go mad with hate. Or that "their friend" the elephant would probably try to kill them, if they would go close, without its Mahout nearby. I earlier described my point of view regarding all this in an earlier blog: Can elephants suffer in elephant sanctuaries, as an effect of volonteers exploit and opinions? 

But in this world its legal to create your own reality, if you dont appreciate the real one, and you can share this "pseudo-reality" with your friends, and create consensus that "its all true" why a "consenus" is more and more often regarded as an evidence. Regardless if a scientific publications speaks othervise. And since they belong to a culture Elite, they are entitled to downgrade other human beings.

So, since the 90s farmers, hunters, Circus people are "bad people" :

• Hunters performing legal hunts are hated. Even if they contribute to species conservation
• Educated Wildlife officers especially if performing culling of animals, are hated.
• Circus, and Circus people are hated
• Because as "everyone" knows, hey dont "love" animals, regardless if they spent all their life with them, fed them, washed them, helped them when they were sick, etc.

But even if you never even met an elephant physically, you can today become an elephant expert just by reading Internet Forums. And there you get confirmation, that you belong to the culture Elite, who understands what elephants "love" and you can become an "elephant lover", who understands elephants much better than those who lived with them for generations.

We can see how this has more and more taken over on  Facebook now, and if Mala will die she will not really die, she will "walk over the rainbow", "rejoin her family in the other world", etc. and All bullshit, and illogical concepts in a feministic dominated environment, because a dead elephant is a dead elephant. A dead elephant doesnt walk over rainbows and it doesnt have any social life at all, The remains may get stored in a scientific institution, and get an Accession Catalog number., and most parts of the body will go to destruction. No rainbow. Just a dead elephant.

When I started to work in the Stockholm Zoo in 1977, there were only one woman zookeeper employed, the rest, about twenty zookeepers were all men. Today, in the same Zoo, theres one man working as zookeeper, all the others are women. 

And I get the feeling that, most employees in charge of the information section in Zoos, and the zoos new Social Media and "Facebook-section" are women, and after all the sweet cat pictures on Facebook, by this, nature and animals, has become extremely commercial, but not the real nature and real animals, only the fictional many animal related Facebook sections became partly taken over, and controlled by women. On Facebook in general, they often dictate right and wrong. political correctness etc. Wrong ideas and opinions are being punished, and the Facebook account closed for a week or so, so the person understands which rules are applied. Irs like in the old DDR, where people with wrong ideas were sent to "training camps", and returned brainwashed. When a pseudo reality is created, everyone must believe in this reality, and it is "forbidden" to question the pseudo-reality.

The same is applied to pseudoscience, and contrary to real science, its also "forbidden" to be questioned. A consensus made b a few is enough as "evidence". This fascinating new concept of describing the world, may eventually find its way into scientific publications, and general Information Flow. futurewise.

Regardless if everything is totally wrong, and can easily be debunked as fraud, it doesnt matter, if enough women writing on their favourite Network have agreed on their alternative truth and reality.

The African wild dog "Solo" who probably never existed in reality, has become "a new truth" together with all the other "beloved" animals with exception fur ugly and creepy things like ticks, mosquitos, bugs and other ugly creeps that doesnt look like a baby with large ears and large eyes, looking sad. 

Or male sex of different species, like elephants. All wild elephants only have mothers, their fathers seldom described. And all wild elephants live in herds "led by a female" because the existence of the 50% of the species, the males, are neglected, or minimized to "sons" of the mother elephant in books, articles and essays about elephants, written by women, for women. Lately, "news" about that the Y-chromosome is dying and will disappear, is spread on internet as "science" and it seems that many people  actually really believe this. If a reader favors an opinion, they want ask if its really true. 

So most New Age animals are "Solo". and all of them are of course victims of the worst and most hated organism on earth: --White, adult Men. Because white adult men have wrong opinions and ideas, and they treat animals bad, they dont "love" them like women does. White adult men are only destroying the environment, they pollute the air, and created anthroposophic climate change. As animal trainers they use whips and dominance, instead of whistle pipes and targets. 

Lately also Asian Mahouts has become "bad people". In a semi post-missionairy and post-colonizing way, Mahouts basically suffer from one major error: they dont "love" animals. They probably hate them, and they abuse them and hit them, and doent let them drink water or feed properly. 

Therefore: Asian Mahouts, should be equally be hated as hunters, farmers, circus people, and old white Men, belonging to a lost generation, who isnt political correct and brainswshed by feminism.

Therefore, elephant camps, especially where tourist riding is aloud, are hated. It doesnt matter that they contribute to species conservation, they are "wrong" anyway, regrdless if Thailand in 2014, during the last six years , had a birth rate (62.67±10.69) which was higher than the dead rate (23.83±8.01) (p<0.0001). (Weerasak Pintawongs), all due to ridings with elephants, financing the Kui people breeding them so succesfully, so captive elephants in Thailand became sustainable.

-While sanctuaries are "right". but only 80% right if managed by a woman, and only 100% correct if managed by a white woman, because many Asian women, are also referred to as "bad" if they are elephant owners,  unless their name is Lek Chailert, or if Lek Chailert support them. Lek Chailert also threatened to sue me and she claims that the Kui peoples elephant breeding is based on "rapes" and therefore "unethical".  30 years ago most people would had shared the joy and happiness of a new born elephant, today, it is regarded questionable if it was bred in an "ethical" way, or not.

This may all sound somewhat extreme reflections I share with you, but they are the result of spending huge amounts of time on Internet, studying how Feminism and Animal Rights Movement take over the Public view of animals, shaping a new brainwashed generation, judging all generations before them as stupid and unmodern. Today a zookeeper who worked 2,5 years as assistant in one Zoo, sharing the correct ideas and being favored by a headkeeper, is regarded as a better Zookeeper than a person who worked 40 years in 10 Zoos under various conditions.

The World has gone insane. But, its OK and legal to be insane.

But under those circumstances, one would expect Zoos would choose to make neutral informational a priority, and focus on issues of science, but NO, on Social Media, more and more Zoos hang on and follow the "main-stream", as long as they get many "likes" on their FB page.

Some 5-10 years ago, a Zoo would be careful to tell the public, if an elephant baby had Herpes virus.

The staff was informed not to tell public, Today, elephants with Herpes has become "Solo" on Facebook and the Zoos Media Sector profit on the suffering animal, creating emotional stories, and where zookeepers of course weep a lot, and suffer with the animals. So everyone can suffer together and enjoy the Emotional Porn.

But may there be a risk with all this? Is every media attention positive for a Zoo, even if it gets uncontrolled, and filled with emotional comments from the Public? I think its a relevant question.

If Zoos dont take precautions, they may end up having to take orders from all those misinformed, emotional women, and then we can forget about science, and that Zoos deliver scientific information.

Regarding Mala, yes its sad. 

Especially since colic is a very uncomfortable condition, and painful. But mostly elephant who suffer from colic get painkillers, and become supervised 24/7 by caring keepers and veterinarians. 

Still of course, an old elephant with colic, may die. No elephant lives forever. 

But no balloons, candle lights, or love poems can help Mala, who during the years were taken good care of by caring and competent care takers in the Zoos where she lived. 

And she had a pretty long life;

Especially compared to the over 9 000 elephants that died of starvation in Tsavo National park during only two years drought in 1971-1972, 

And in Amboseli National Park in Kenya, according to Cynthia Moss:

• The rains failed in 1976 and as a result there was a terrible drought in Amboseli. Many elephants died that year particularly young ones [...] Of the 29 calves that were born to the whole population in 1976, 14 died before they were a year old. [...] More than half the calves born that year died.[...] Only two calves had been born to the Amboseli population between January 1977 and November 1978. During the drought the females had stopped reproductive cycling altogether. 
• In 1984 there was another serious drought and again many elephants died: 11 adult females, 13 adult males, three juveniles, 13 weanlings, five second-year calves, and 22 first-year calves.
• 2009 everything changed dramatically for Amboseli including for the elephants, other wildlife, people and livestock. The area and much of Kenya experienced the worst drought in living memory. [...] Nearly 400 elephants died during 2009 including 250 calves. [...] 83% of the wildebeests, 71% of the zebras, 61% of the buffaloes, and 25% of Amboseli’s elephants died.

It has to be remembered, that information has sometimes a tendency to be biased, and although presented as scientific material, it may not give a neutral point of view. And it may be taken out of context, and not logically analyzed.

But it is the Zoos responsibility to handle information as correct and precise as possible, and although Social Media  has become an important marketing factor, there is a risk that it may become a tool for biased opinions and politics,  while the Zoos website gets less attention. 

It is important that those two information platforms are integrated with each other, and a result of the Zoos Information policy. Every tendency that a Zoos Facebook page or likewise starts to get a "life on its own" or gets highjacked by Animal Rights Activists or simply naive "dreamers" who claim that animals dont die but walk over rainbows, has to be reduced to a minimum.

The scientific value has to be safely monitored. Any kind of Anthropomorphism should be removed from Zoos Social Media since its the first step towards the more extreme development described above.

As Zoopersons we must respect and tolerate different views the Public may share, although some may be totally wicked. But we shall not let them take control over our information system and concepts.

Because soon may also Zookeepers become as hated as farners, hunters and circus people. 

Even if they are women... because in the new beatiful world created by the "make-a-change-generation" there is no mercy. All sinners will be dragged to the shame pole where they will become judged and punished by the Culture Elite, who think they are the only one who know what "love" means..

 

 

Happy Birthday! Pregolja in Kaliningrad Zoo is 50 years old. An older elephant with a mixed life.

I will never become or accept extreme animal rights activists. But if theres one elephant, which used to come in my mind, which I thought could have had a better life, it is Pregolja, who gets 50 years today. 

We dont know if she will get any presents from abroad, but her zoo gave her sweet things to eat.

On the pictures she looks in good health, and alltogether a surprisingly example of a well cared for elephant, in spite of mass criticism from abroad. It would have been easy for the zoo to capitulate for animal rights activists, and send away their elephant to an unknown destiny, but the zoo was brave, and saw to Pregolja in the first hand, even with the risk of loosing credit from foreign countries. 

This is true love for an animal, and I think Kaliningrad Zoo earns a price for their courage and dedication to take a life long responsibility for their elephant, regardless the price.

I believe that there must be some dedicated elephant keepers there, who will try to make her happier today, than usually.  I also believe that those keepers try to do do a descent work every day, and the fact that Pregolja is still living, and getting 50 years old, is an indication that at least she is taken good care of. Her life could certainly be better, but also worse. Shes spared the destiny of the 9 000 elephants that  during three years, starved to death between 1971 and 1974 in Tsavo East, often referred to as some sort of paradise, and "where elephants belong". Life in the wild is not always that great. Please try 48 hours, without a tent and a lot of protection, in the nearest forest, and I think you will get my point, after your return to your favourite coffee table. 

Nature is not a Disney film. And life in the wild nature is not for losers, and even the winners will face many challenges. However, I think poor old Pregolja could have had a better life. What is her story?

The female Asian elephant Pregolja was born 1970-10-12, 50 years ago today, in present Kaliningrad Zoo, which was, before world-war II,  called Königsberger Tiergarten, when the city of Kaliningrad was called Königsberg, until 1946. Today Kaliningrad is a city in the Russian enclave Kaliningrad Oblast, part of the present Russian Federation, located on the coast of the Baltic Sea.

(Some of the historical parts below, are cited from from Wikipedia) 

During the Middle Ages, the territory of what is now the Kaliningrad Oblast was inhabited by tribes of Old Prussians (Sambians) in the western part and by Lithuanians in the eastern part. The tribes were divided by the rivers Pregolya and Łyna. The Teutonic Knights conquered the region and established a monastic state, and the region became Germanised, and later part of East Prussia, until world war II, and in August 29, 1944, Königsberg became Russian. Over two million people fled before the Red Army and were evacuated by sea, while:

The President of the United States and the British Prime Minister have declared that they will support the proposal of the Conference at the forthcoming peace settlement.

 Königsberg was renamed Kaliningrad in 1946 in memory of Chairman of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR Mikhail Kalinin. The remaining German population was forcibly expelled between 1947 and 1948. The conquered territory was populated with citizens of the Soviet Union, mostly ethnic Russians but to a lesser extent also Ukrainians and Belarusians.

The German language was replaced with the Russian language. In 1950, there were 1,165,000 inhabitants, which was only half the number of the pre-war population.

 Where were the others? Maybe we will never know, where one and a half million ended up. OR, if they even survived? With force, expelled from their homes, their country, and their society...

Enough about human history, although it has had a large impact on Pregoljas life destiny. She was born, and has spend all her life , in Kaliningrad Zoo (former Königsberger Tiergarten) .

Königsberger Tiergarten, today Kaliningrad Zoo,  was founded in 1896. 125 years ago. It is one of the oldest zoological gardens in Russia, and one of the largest., and it comprises 315 species with a total of 2264 individual animals (as of 2005),, in an area which extends over 16.5 ha.

From the zoo's opening to 1945, five female Asian elephants resided at this location. Several names and most dates are unknown, though it is known, regardless of how many were owned at the time, noone survived World War II.

Pictures from 1911 show the elephant Jenny giving a ride to children in the Königsberg zoo. her keeper looks pretty relaxed on the photo. Together, they had their routines, every day, and developed together. 

Jenny, from my professional eyes, looks pretty healthy and strong, and may have had a pretty good life, compared to starving elephants in Africa, where during years of draught, 50% of the babies dies out of starvation. I havnt found any records for Jennys death. At least another three elephants lived in the zoo, until the war. But at least one elephant were actually shipped to Germany in 1939, when the war started. Her name is Tuzinka, and she was born in Warsaw Zoo 1937-04-16, daughter of Jas and Kaska II (Kasia, Katschi), elephants who have their stories, which is not the subject of this article.

Tuzinka was transferred 1939 to Berlin by the order of Lutz Heck, director of Berlin Zoo. I prefer to imagine that he wanted a rare zoo born elephant, to be transferred as far as possible from a war zone, when the war broke out, although his reasons may have been others. Unfortunately Tuzinka died anyway. Only one elephant in Berlin zoo survived the war, the Asian bull Siam:

Siam, together with 90 other animals (out of 3,715) survived the second world war, and the bombings of Berlin Zoo.Interestingly, most World War II "trivia" sites inaccurately repeat the myth that "The first Allied bombs to fall on Berlin killed the zoo's only elephant." The truth is that the Berlin zoo never had only one elephant, and the bombs that fell on the city in 1944 killed seven of the zoo's elephants, leaving Siam the sole surviving pachyderm. Somehow, this has been distorted over time and the myth has been turned into "amusing" trivia for war buffs. 

So likely, from a zoologists point of view, Lutz Heck may have wanted this specimen to be safe and far away from war. And not one elephants from my pre-war list in Königsberger Tiergarten seem to have survived the war. RIP. Maybe they were even eaten, like Pollux and Castor in Jardin d´Acclimatation in Paris, France, who during new years eve in 1870, was served as dinner, during another war...

Back to the birthday child Pregolja. Her parents were Jimmi (Jimmy) and Shanda (Shandra). Both parents arrived to Kaliningrad in 1960, and according to Jana Havlová, at least the father Jimmie came from a animal trade hub called Zoo-Centrum Moskwa (Objed), arriving to a country administered by the planning committee of the Lithuanian SSR, although it had its own Communist Party committee.

Shandra, being born in the wild in 1953, had three babies with Jimmie, and died 1974 in hart failure. 

On the picture we can see a brave keeper of Jimmie, a person belonging to older generations, who managed to to work this bull with large tusks, for many years. I have no clue of the persons name.

EEG, the European Elephant Group, state in the book Elefanten in Zoo und Circus, (Haufellner, Kurt, Schilfarth, Schweiger) that Jimmi, born 1941 wild in Sri Lanka, arrived in Kaliningrad Zoo in 1950, while EEP claim he arrived in 1960.  Jimmie sired a total of 8 babies between 1968 and 1995, of which Pregolja, born 1970, is the sole survivor today, after his daughter Marta/Candy died in Yerevan.

But from those 8 babies Jimmie sired, only three was with Shandra. The other was with his daughter Pregolija. So, Marta's/Candys father Jimmie was also her grandfather, she was the fourth calf her father sired with his daughter Pregolia. How could this be?

Of Jimmie and Shandras babies, two were stillborn or killed by the mother, and only Pregolia survived. And Shanda died in hart failure 1974, leaving her 33 year old father Jimmie, and her 4 year old daughter the only of their species in Kaliningrad Zoo. 

And of course the elephant keepers let the elephants be together. Pregolja grew up with her father, and they had bred 5 babies. All of them, except one died after some days, or were killed by Pregolja after the birth. For some reason, and my guess is that a keeper saved the last baby, one baby survived;

Pregolias daughter Candy/Marta, her last baby, was born in 1995, and lived until 2008, when she died in Yerevan Zoo, to which she were deported from circus Durow, after she crushed elephant trainer Alexander Terekhov in elephant stable at Durovs Little Corner theater, in Moscow, in 2001. 

February 23, 2001: Russian Circus Elephant Crushes Trainer to Death - An elephant crushed its trainer to death after a performance at a Moscow theater, employees say. Two employees at Durov's Little Corner, a small animal theater named after a famous family of circus performers, said trainer Alexander Terekhov had been crushed to death in the elephant's pen after the evening performance. "We're still investigating the incident," one of the employees, who did not give his name, told Reuters Thursday. Interfax news agency said ambulance workers confirmed the incident.

Something the mother Pregolja doesnt have a clue about. her father Jimmie died the same year, in 2008, 59 years old, and since then Pregolja havnt seen any elephants. her closest friends are her care takers, and possibly some daily visitors she knows since years, who may bring some sweets for her.

Since the nineties, the zoo has been criticised, and pushed to send Pregolja somewhere, which they have refused, arguing that staying in her home is the best for her.

 The picture of Pregolja, turning her back to us, doesn't mean we have to turn our back to her. But this doesnt mean we must judge her home. And to be honest, in spite of the iron spikes and the small enclosure, the elephant Pregolja on the picture looks rather healthy and strong. Her enclosure may, or may not, have been modernized and enlarged, since this photo was taken. We may think it looks bad.

But this is where she was born, where she grew up, and what she is used to accept as her home.

I dont know if her house has been changed, but this was her home at least some years ago. People may criticize, may think its cruel, or whatever, for Pregolja this is the environment she knows as her home since she was born. This is her safety, her personal environment. We actually dont have a clue how much she enjoys or suffer in this stable. Most probably she have no clue that some people regard happiness in the amount of meter it is to the next wall. If the next wall is far away, according to those people you should be happier. Pregolja, on the other hand, may have different measurements. 

Like, if she gest bread with her evening food or not. Carrots, and how much? Is there a variation in diet? If you imagine visiting an older relative in a nursery, you may see similar needs. Older persons doesnt really discuss how large a room is, or if the responsible person is a professor or a doctor, a mailman or a vacuum cleaner. BUT they may be particular with how salty the daily soup is. Or why noone sings, or play a guitar. And why they close the lights at 8. 

Today Pregolja is 50 years old, and its a bit late to start consider what social needs she may have in terms of other elephants, or wherever she could be moved. Statistically, very few elephants at this age, survive a relocation to a new place, regardless if its politically labelled as "sanctuary" or not, often they die after a short time. And far away, women will write poems that "at least she was loved her last years etc" poems from their fantasy world, where they reject the truth, that the animal which was "saved" did not survive the relocation. It died shortly afterwards, and it did not at all walk over a rainbow.

Animals like elephants are like old people, they are habituated to different environments and daily routines, which make them feel safe. They dont define their their daily quality iin square meters, or how many playmates they have. Some of them die short time after they are moved, simply because they get terrorized by the new "friend". All those consequences are hidden, forgotten, and neglected when the animal rights people hammer their keyboard, and let the world know that they are in fact elephant experts, and know better than elephant keepers, curators, veterinarians and directors, who know a specific elephant half their lives. 

IF and when, we want to enrich the life for elephants as Pregolja, who at least survived well for fifty years, and didnt have to starve to death, like her sisters in Tsavo National park, I guess we should ask the people around her, how we can make things better. Instead of placing them ina corner of shame, it would make sense to ask her keeper, what makes Pregolja happy? What food or titbits does she prefer? 

The worst thing that could happen is if people would demand that she should be moved, not considering her personal needs. Like what happened with Finlands last elephant Vanni, who died in Nikaloaev zoo shortly after her relocation. I worked with Vanni in 2000, and she was a rather happy and positive elephant, accepting even children going into her box. She simply loved anyone. Except the elephant in the zoo where she was moved, she stopped eating and died. She would probably have lived today, if she would still be in her home in Finland. Theres many examples like this, and always when the elephants are moved to a "sanctuary", animal rights people are happy, and if the elephant dies, they say that "she walked over the rainbow". I argue that this is not welfare, this is politics, and stupidity.

Theres numerous petition sites and forums about Pregolja, where thousands of peoples signed something they actually dont have a clue about. And if Pregolja would be moved to a "sanctuary" they would clap their hans two weeks, and if she would die after a year, they would be silent, or repeat the "walk-over-the-rainbow-mantra. But in reality, they wouldnt really care anymore.

If theres anything we want to do for Pregolja, the start would be to ask her staff and people around her, what they think could be improved, and what they think could enrich her life. Maybe she would like to have more tree branches to eat? Cutting down branches and transport to a zoo is costly, but most elephants enjoy branches a lot. Or is she fond of fruits? Does she have pain in her legs, and would enjoy expensive pain killers? Does she enjoy visitors, who feed her bananas or biscuits?

As we can see on this picture from her birthday, she like fruits.

Today Pregolja is fifty, and she can probably become older than her father, who died at sixty. 

To be the only elephant in the country can be seen as tragical. And unnatural. For Pregolja, who was born in Kaliningrad, this is all she knows. The people around her, who take care of her. The smells and sounds in the air. The rain, the temperature, the daily life. All those things she grew up with, is part of her life. Maybe, but only maybe, memories of her father, and even her mother, who died when she was four years old. But this is 46 years ago.

Id we really care for her, then I think we should send a positive message to her elephant keepers, her Vet, her Curator and Director, and tell them that we think about her. And maybe ask them if theres anything she needs? That is true welfare. 

Congratulations to a long life, Pregolja! <3 And congratulations to the zoo, who didnt bend their heads for animal rights activists, but consider they have a responsibility for this animal until her death. Not every Asian elephant reach the age of fifty, so considering the conditions, and the history, the zoo has made a good job, and taken care of their elephant well. 

Sangduen Chailert (Lek) threatens to sue me because of my blog article about her and Elephant Nature Park?

(like Pat Derby and PAWS wanted to do in October 2012, read more about that here)

Heres the laywers letter.

In my mailbox today, was a mail from Nitipon Piwmow, Barrister-At-Law in Thailand, representing Sangduen Chailert, with the subject:Notice Letter. For anyone who never heard of Sangduen Chailert (Lek Chailert), she is owner of "Elephant Nature Park up in Chiang Mai, northern Thailand, as well as a couple of other "elephant sanctuaries" in Thailand and Cambodia, and in spite of its impressing incomes, estimated to 10. 000-15. 000 $US daily, its referred to as a non-profit. Obviously some of their funding is used to pay lawyers: The mail I received from Nitipon Piwmow, contained the following text:

Dear Mr Koehl,

We write you on behalf of our client, Sangduen Chailert (Lek), on the issue of unreal information and the defamation to Ms Chailert that you are currently posting on your websites below:

1. http://dankoehl.blogspot.com/

2. http://dankoehl.blogspot.co.uk/

3. http://dankoehl.blogspot.nl/

4. http://dankoehl.blogspot.be/

5. http://dankoehl.blogspot.nl/2016_03_01_archive.html

6. http://dankoehl.blogspot.com/2016_03_01_archive.html

7. http://dankoehl.blogspot.co.uk/2016_03_01_archive.html

8. http://dankoehl.blogspot.nl/2016_03_01_archive.html

9. http://dankoehl.blogspot.be//2016_03_01_archive.html

10. http://dankoehl.blogspot.com/2016/03/sangduen-lek-chailert-and-elephant.html

11. http://dankoehl.blogspot.co.uk/2016/03/sangduen-lek-chailert-and-elephant.html

12. Dan Koehl's Blog: Mahout killed by elephant at Elephant Nature Park (ENP), Chiang Mai, Thailand.

13. Dan Koehl's Blog: Mahout killed by elephant at Elephant Nature Park (ENP), Chiang Mai, Thailand.

14. http://dankoehl.blogspot.be/2016/03/sangduen-lek-chailert-and-elephant.html

We demand that you remove these posting from you websites immediately, Ms Chailert shall go to the court in order to protect herself from the irreparable damage being caused by your posting.

Sincerely,

Nitipon Piwmow,

Barrister-At-Law.

Sangduen "Lek" Chailert and Elephant Nature Park (ENP), Chiang Mai, Thailand

After publishing my blog about the tragical killing of a mahout by an elephant in the Elephant Nature park" in Thailand, (which was not the first, according to three independent sources, last year at least two mahouts were killed by elephants, on the grounds of ENP)









Some sources state the name Mr San Tor Ni, others the name Maung Anthony, pictured at a Chiang Mai Hospital


Due to this tragic incident, I believe its time to step forward and give a balancing report to all animal rights activists glorifying of one of the largest scams I have witnessed in Asia, since there seem to be a need to highlight that this is, in no way, a paradise for elephants or the staff, although it has according to sources, an estimated annual income between $US 3. 650. 000 and $US 5. 475. 000 dollars.


The way we see it, our mahouts should be listening to the elephants, NOT the elephants listening to the mahouts.” Cite from http://www.saveelephant.org/blog/meet-the-mahout-elephant-nature-park-medo/.

Mr San Tor Ni/Maung Anthony can't listen to Leks lies, or her personal interpretation what her elephants says anymore, may he rest in peace.


But let us hope that he is the last death victim for Lek Chailerts experiment, and honor him, and all mahouts in Thailand, who are under constant attacks by Lek and animal rights activists, by telling the truth.


Let the world know the truth about a smart lier, who found an easy way of getting rich and famous, by scamming tourists and naive animal friends, attacking the very people that she depend upon, while threatening species conservation in Thailand by her lies about elephant riding, and elephant training in Thailand.


Let us make Leks all prizes and awards burn on her wall, as the testimony over all falsified stories, and her abuse of truth and elephants, and her staff. Let her millions of dollars burn her pockets. Let her supporters, the animal rights activists, feel shame over their ignorance, and neglect of truth, science and true animal welfare.


Lets hope that official Thai Veterinarians will perform all necessary medical examnisations needed, including blood tests from each elephants, and check-up of potentially lethal Zoonoses, and at least the most suffering elephants can be transferred into the hands of professionals, to get qualified treatment.


And lets hope that Thai authorities will perform an advanced investigation, and that justice be done.








Introduction


This document is intended to tell my personal point of view about Lek Chailert and Elephant Nature Park in Chiang Mai, Thailand, as well as my later correspondence with the owners. At the end is section with Economy reports and critical voices.



Some details concerning the management of her elephants which I describe in detail below, can be seen on other places also, with origin in bad economy, low elephant competence, or just plain ignorance and greed.







But it’s a great difference when poor people who cannot read and write do mistakes in their elephant management, compared to an educated person like Lek Chailert, who received international rewards and prices, and makes over 10 000 dollars per day. Lately, the film “Apology to elephants, lifts her to the sky, and makes a false portrait of a heroine, very similar to Pat Derby, founder of PAWS in US. (< READ THAT!)





Lek pretends to make a paradise for elephants at her farm, and lately as a marketing of herself, criticizes almost the rest of the world’s elephant managers. She fabricate stories about abuse of young elephants, smuggle of elephant babies to Thailand from Burma etc., which in most cases are not true at all, the intention of all this is propaganda, in order to convince animal lovers on Internet, that only she knows how to take care of elephants, with the intention of getting even more money from kind people.





The whole world of animal rights activists love Lek Chailert, but what they love is simply a lie, a fabrication of a person who has fooled kind, animal loving people for over 20 years.




Lek normally never employs the previous mahouts who take care of her new bought elephants before, she prefer her Burmese mahouts who accept to work with the cheapest wages. Still, in the propaganda, the cheaper Karen mahouts can be used to give an extra flair to Elephant Nature Park: “Most of the mahouts – caretakers and companions to the elephants – are refugees from Burma and ENP provides them with all the required paperwork to make their employment legal in Thailand.” Or, they work illegally in the Park. Its unknown how many work there illegally, but for sure this category can be trusted never to speak (bad) about their employer, who can kick them at once, and even see that that they get punished for illegal work. But a number of those Burmese Karen mahouts have left ENP during the years, in frustration regarding the conditions.







Still contrary to what all naive visitors think before and after their visit, the main criticism from professional elephant people, is her poor and unprofessional management of her elephants.




Every elephant can be shown to have been abused if you tell the world that to ride an elephant is abuse - so even healthy, happy elephants can be branded as rescues. I think that sooner or later a 'whistle blower' website will be set up in the same way as they have done for the Tiger Temple - I know enough ex-staff who are extremely upset with the difference between what is said and what goes on there. A lot of elephant camp owners have to explain to journalists, donors and potential guests that what they heard from someone who had been to ENP was wrong - or ignoring death threats from her 'fans'.” - (Anon)




“The big elephant issues at ENP (forgetting the business ethics and mistreatment of mahouts) are the number of dead elephants that died for no reason other than ignorance. I have heard so many obviously true stories over the years.” (cite: Anon)


"The advanced degree of the decay seen in the majority of feet trimmed is harmful to the elephants, causing pain and lameness. Left untreated, the foot infections can become systemic and even life threatening. Allow the elephants to spend more time off chains to allow for natural posturing and movement. The elephants should be given the freedom to wander where they wish and when they wish, and not be forced to adhere to a show schedule to accommodate the public and volunteers. Mahouts should shadow the elephant but not dictate their movements". (Carol Buckley)
Economy
On numerous places can be read: Elephant Nature Foundation is a non-profit organization which advocates and acts on behalf of the rights of Asian elephants in Thailand, as well as Elephant Nature Park is a Thailand elephant conservation project.

From ENPs website 2013:


Save Elephant Foundation is a Thai registered non-profit organization. We are required by law to provide annual reports to the government providing transparency regarding our funding, our spending and our progress. Claims regarding any sort of profit are false. Our registration with the Thai government can be found on our Web site, www.saveelephant.org and our annual report can be accessed via request.
Sounds good? In reality, Lek seems to have numerous accounts, and beside the foundation a company and no one can get a real insight in her economy, which is far from transparent.
A visitor wrote in 2013:


"We were also told that the place costs $250,000 US dollars to operate every year. If you multiply the 2,500 baht cost of admission by how many people come per day, the place could easily pull in 2-4 million US dollars per year! So I have no idea how the money is spent...we not only got ripped off but we wasted one of our few days in Chiang Mai!"
It is estimated, that she makes around 10 000 – 15 000 US $ per day- A LOT OF MONEY:



Lek and sincerity: I have no doubt whatsoever that she really loves elephants, but I disbelieve her pleas of poverty. ENP makes at least $10,000 a day all year around. It is a huge profit maker. It is a private business.


If she loves the elephants so much, why doesn't she change from being a business to become a legally registered Thai non-profit foundation, where all the elephants and land are property of the foundation -- a foundation with a proper board of directors, two annual meetings, and open account books. The need for a foundation is also because she takes so much donated money from overseas.



If she were to get die or get killed -- say a head-on crash driving to CM -- I think her elephants would get scattered far and wide. (Anon)


The only account, where one can get insight, is her UK charity.
UK Charity

Elephant Nature Foundation UK is a registered UK charity (#1117758) that supports the work of Elephant Nature Foundation registered on MS LEK CHAILERT and MRS PHYLLIS KIRKLAND, HILLTOP, WINDMILL HILL, SHERE ROAD, WEST HORSLEY, LEATHERHE,


Tel: +44 (0) 1483 284421

Email: enfuk@elephantnaturefoundation.org

Website: www.elephantnaturefoundation.org




On http://apps.charitycommission.gov.uk/Showcharity/RegisterOfCharities/CharityWithoutPartB.aspx?RegisteredCharityNumber=1117758&SubsidiaryNumber=0 you can see the balance and some graphs.


During eight years, 2008-2016, a total income of £359. 668 (US$ 519.80 US Dollars), while £267. 553 were spent. Where are the missing £92. 115?

And this just the income from the UK charity, the only single one account, that is transparent?




...still she thinks she has not enough money to buy proper food for the animals? Something that could be included in the Charitable objects:




TO ADVANCE PUBLIC EDUCATION IN PARTICULAR BY PROVIDING EDUCATIONAL PROGRAMMES THAT RAISE PUBLIC AWARENESS BOTH NATIONALLY AND INTERNATIONALLY, OF THE PROBLEMS FACING BOTH WILD AND DOMESTICATED ASIAN ELEPHANTS AND BY SUPPORTING AND CONDUCTING RESEARCH INITIATIVES THAT INVESTIGATE THE LONG-TERM SUSTAINABILITY OF ASIAN ELEPHANT, AND THE ENVIRONMENT (AND WHERE POSSIBLE, PUBLISHING THE USEFUL RESULTS OF SUCH RESEARCH).




TO FURTHER SUCH CHARITABLE PURPOSES FOR THE BENEFIT OF THE INDIGENOUS LOCAL COMMUNITIES IN PARTICULAR BUT NOT EXCLUSIVELY IN ASIA BY ESTABLISHING PROJECTS THAT PROMOTE AND ENCHANCE THEIR WELL BEING AND WITH THE AIM OF HELPING TO REDUCE HUMAN-ELEPHANT CONFLICTS.''




ENP charity in United Kingdom





Financial year end (FYE)

Income

Spending

Accounts received

Annual Return/Annual Update received

View


31 Mar 2015

£31,149

£2,144

08 Jan 2016

27 Oct 2015

Accounts


31 Mar 2014

£41,419

£1,144

19 Dec 2014

22 Jan 2015

Accounts


31 Mar 2013

£30,792

£38,327

07 Mar 2014 (35 days late)

11 Jan 2014

Accounts




































View


31 Mar 2012

£51,302

£75,384

13 Apr 2013 (72 days late)

13 Apr 2013 (72 days late)

Accounts


31 Mar 2011

£92,056

£64,669

05 Mar 2012 (34 days late)

05 Mar 2012 (34 days late)

Accounts


31 Mar 2010

£52,593

£41,348

15 Jan 2011

15 Jan 2011

Accounts


31 Mar 2009

£31,234

£28,919

27 Jan 2010

27 Jan 2010

Accounts


31 Mar 2008

£29,183

£15,618

22 Jan 2009

16 Feb 2009 (16 days late)

Accounts




My visit in 2011

First I want to share some notes from my visit five years ago, to the Elephant Nature Park in Chiang Mai, in 11th of March 2011.


During winters in 2010 and 2011 I travelled in Asia from camp to camp to document elephants in Cambodia, Laos and Thailand, and I e-mailed Sangduen "Lek" Chailert, founder of the Elephant Nature Park upon my arrival in Chiang Mai.






I have had correspondence with Lek Chailert since 2007, and although elephant “sanctuaries” seldom has something interesting to see in terms of scientific values, since they are mostly founded on emotional base by young post-missionary white people who want to became famous by enlighten the "less educated tribespeoples" and become heroes in the eyes of animal rights activists in their home countries,


But I was interested to visit ENP. Lek was known to run an interesting project, but also to have initiated a lot of problems for other camps and elephant owners in Thailand, and initiating campaigns towards the Thai elephant community and business. Locals state she started like every one else with elephant rides, and then made a shortcut, with less work, and more money in her pocket. Still, I was still neutral regarding her location, when I wrote her, once I arrived in Chiang Mai from northern Thailand, and asked if I could come for a visit.





Lek Chailert generously invited me to Elephant Nature Park during my visit to Chiang Mai in November 2011. My visit extended afternoon, overnight, and one days stay when I was walking around, witnessing the absolutely worst case of elephant management I have ever experienced, during almost 40 years as professional elephant manager and consultant. For me, on a criminal level.


Training standard and management

Watching the elephants at ENP during my visit first filled me with an amusing feeling which was soon changed to anger. I was prepared to see invalid elephants; since Lek are collecting those, and disobedient elephants, since hooks are officially prohibited, but I was surprised to see the poor shape most of the elephants were in due to the unprofessional, poor management. Elephants were walking around, pretty apathy, while some mahouts were trying to make them to move, with endless commands, or trying to lure them with fruits etc.



Obviously they didn't roam free like they do in a Zoo, but were supposed to walk on some "streets" on the previous potatoes-field, in order not to destroy the grass, as can be seen on this picture below.







Compared to riding camps where the elephants during the tourist rides, leave the grounds and are ridden out in the forest, Leks elephants are confined to her "park", since they are more or less uncontrollable. They have the freedom to be chained 14 hours, and the rest move around like a prisoner, not like in a Zoo where the elephants are allowed to walk free in the enclosure..



It seemed each and every elephants walked single with the mahouts, and there was a lot of pathetic pulling in ears, bribing with bananas etc, and still the mahouts had to use an enormous amount of time, just to make an elephant to come down to the river for a bath.



















But... what is in the hands of the mahout at minute 5.37, when the mahout is running after an elephant attacking a volunteer?




If the mahout is not allowed to use hooks, still it sees they have some sharp objects, hidden in their pockets? Which of course Lek Chailert knows, but she prefer not to tell the truth about that.

Also the language bridge between the Burmese mahouts, who doesn't speak English, and the public, creates safety risks.




Here is some witness reports:


“For some perverse gentlemanly reason I'd never mention that place by name when criticizing but I am happy to support criticism of practices that look good to the uneducated but hurt elephants in the long run, or the hypocrisy like telling people that your elephants can be trained by love - only to see them chained 24 hours a day or sent elsewhere for 'traditional' training when they break the owner's ribs, or that you don't need hooks when the mahouts all carry nails or slingshots."





”I dont have evidence myself, but another guest told me that she saw mahouts used spikes which they touched the elephants with in different situations”


"The elephants seemed crammed in too - they were fighting with each other and guys hitting them with big sticks - I asked our guide why they were being hit and she told us it is normal...."


"They do not use elephant hooks but employ other less obvious means to inflict pain to control the elephants. The use of nails, slingshots, sticks and other weapons should be banned. Allow the elephants to spend more time off chains to allow for natural posturing and movement, which has a direct impact on the wear pattern on their pads and nails. The majority of the mahouts speak Burmese and do not understand Thai or English. The language barrier makes working with them difficult. It also creates a safety hazard for them when working elephants in close contact with the public because the mahouts are unable to communicate with the public.". (Carol Buckley)


Hope was sent because he was out of control and it was probably after he attacked Lek. By the way, that's the story on how she broke her ribs. (Anon)




But without a normal free contact training system, where elephant hooks are allowed, both peoples and elephants safety is something which the poor mahouts can't not control as a visitors write on Tripadvisor:





"The elephants were wonderful and there were some good highlights watching them play but there were too many in a small space and lots of pushing and fighting between them. I was told by one course volunteer that the previous week one elephant had attacked and killed another which suggests there are too many animals in a small space. If an elephant can be killed there must be a risk to people when there are so many there."

Elephants killed by other elephants? A paradise?





The older elephants are often pushed over by the younger elephants and I know this has happened at ENP and a couple of elephants have died from injuries sustained. Bull elephants have also been kept on chains and are apparently in musth (all year) because there is no one with experience to look after them. (Anon)


The safety issues at ENP are a very important issue, that should be researched by officials.


Last I heard Hope and another young male, Jungle Boy, were so dangerous that they could not be handled. Lek was saying she was going to let them go free in the jungle, etc., but that is clearly impossibly without the royal reintroduction program, which will have nothing to do with here. Yet another instance of why tough but fair training is best for the elephant in the long run. (Anon)

Apart from this, it seems only a minority of the elephants are showcased daily, while the others stay chained the entire day, or are caged. The visitors doesn't see that it's the same elephants being walked around on the grounds, or bathed in the river, and they don't ask why the caged elephants are not allowed to come ot from the cages. Only for extreme reasons, a normal Zoo would confine their elephants to a cage for longer periods.




And why doesn't the visotors reflect on the fact, that the elephants are not let free to use the area as they wish, like they do in a Zoo? Still those visitors actually believe that the ENP elephants are more "free"


In the majority of cases, the nails and pads of the “family group” and two adolescent male elephants were healthier than that of the other elephants who spend less time engaged in the natural behaviors of grazing and moving throughout the habitat. Allow the elephants to spend more time off chains to allow for natural posturing and movement, which has a direct impact on the wear pattern on their pads and nails. (Carol Buckley)




One person I met that day at ENP was Karl Cullen, a long term volounteer at the park, and we had some correspondence later, and I gave him pictures I have taken, which are to be seen on his blog.













Karl Cullen writes on his blog http://elephantdreaming.wordpress.com/2012/08/29/a-growing-stream-of-kids-and-dogs-pt-1/





To your question as to whether the elephants at ENP are captive – of course they are. I don’t think anyone would say otherwise. The elephants at ENP spend at least 14 hours a day in their shelters on chains, and when off chains are restricted by the boundaries of the park and the proximity of other elephants, all of which is regulated by the mahouts. I often described my job as a prison guard, as that was often the role that had to be played. Any elephant not in the wild is a captive elephant. Simple as that, and I don’t think there is any other way to look at it. And this is not a criticism of anyone, or of ENP it should be clearly understood – but in all my time involved at the park it always surprised and sometimes frustrated me that people used words such as “freedom” and living a “natural life” in relation to the elephants at the park. The chains are hardly hidden and anyone can see the elephants chained up there by 5 in the afternoon and watch them get released before 8 in the morning, and yet there were many volunteers who sometimes stated that it wasn’t until later in the week that they even realized the elephants were chained. There is a strange inability in all of us to sometimes see what is right in front of us, once an idea has been planted in our minds. Particularly if it’s an idea that we dearly want to hold onto. This is a big stumbling block to elephant welfare – and many other issues of course – so I would say that one of the most important things we can do, which don’t take any time or money – is to simply allow ourselves to see what is actually right in front of us. To let go of any pre-conceived notions that act as a filter, and just see what is!




I wrote him in again in May 2013, but never had a reply, and later found out that tragically he had died, 38 years old, and his family dont want to have questions what happened
Medical and health issues

Apart from that it is obvious, with the present lack of professionalism and animal welfare in the parks management methods applied, to perform professional medical examination, foot care etc, I was asking myself, what the reason was for the extreme dry skin and foot problems were, and I think I have the answer; The mudpool.













Mud pools has been a popular component in elephant zoo enclosures lately. I also thought they were good until I learned about the skin problems they may cause sometimes: The mud acts like a sponge, when wet it can give moisture to the elephants skin, but when dry, it TAKES moisture from the elephants skin.


In the shadow in a rainforest, with a high relative air moisture, this is no issue, but an open, sun exposed and dry desert like area like the Elephant Nature Park, the mud dries in short time, and starts to dry out the skin.


This can easily be seen at elephants at ENP, especially since they don’t follow wild elephants routines for bathing; early morning, and late evening, in order to give adventure for the visitors and volunteers, the elephants are taken several times to the river in bright sunlight, so the visitors can have something back from all the dollars they paid, and have their memory for life, when they were communicating and playing with an elephant.










The green area on the other side of the river, and the mountains frame the elephants well, and make this look like a beautiful place for elephants, but the other , greener, side of the river doesn't belong to LEK, or ENP, the elephants are not aloud to that area, they remain the semi desert area, and its unknown if seeing those areas on distance really make them happier. But for the human eye, it may look like a paradise, since we enjoy a beautiful view, and sometimes we can enjoy mediocre art because it has a beautiful golden frame.













Many volunteers want to place their hands on the trunk and experience "understanding" of elephants,and feel the "love" from the exploited animal, after stuffing them full with tons of sugar rich fruits like bananas, pineapples oranges, melons etc. Many of those elephants seldom see a twig or branches, suffering from tooth problems and similar problems related to the false diet. On average, some 20% of Asian elephants may carry Tuberculosis, which may be the elephants gift back to the volonteers and their boyfriends, children and their families, after their loving abuse of "hang-around-elephants/mahout-for-a-week/make a change: stuff kilos of pineapples into elephants.





And after the bath some of the elephants are taken to the mud pool.








The elephants are following their instincts, and play in the mud, and apply it on their skin, where it dries up fast in the sunlight, resulting in dried up skin, which can be seen easier and clearer on tails, areas above the nails, and temporal areas. The picture of the tail below, illustrates this, it’s completely dried out.















In western zoos, tails like this most often get treatment; on the next picture I apply vegetable oil on a tail in order to help the skin.








It may also be food related, and later I will discuss issues I experienced at ENP regarding the elephant’s diet.









The visitors and volunteers pay large sums to stay at ENP, and of course there’s a demand from them to have their memory for life, feeding, washing and picture elephants. Therefore, the elephants are washed several times daily, even if it dries out their skin.








The intensive bathing, and mud bathing after each bath, has an opposite effect on elephant’s skin than what laymen expect; it dries out the skin in a dry desert like environment as Elephant Nature Park.


Below is picture of pretty bad kept feet: Overgrown nails totally dried out skin on the feet, probably also fungus. This elephant was not a newcomer, and there’s no reason for an elephant to look like this, in a location that gets more than 10. 000 dollars a day, and tells the world that all other places are bad?









Click on the picture to enlarge


The picture shows extremely dry skin, and dry areas above the nails. The nails are extremely overgrown, so much so they are beginning to get deformed in shape, and most probably have abscess. The area above the nails is very sensitive, filled with sweat glands, if they get to dried up, and stop work; the result will often become an abscess, which later moves down in the foot and create large problems for the elephant.





Here is an ENP elephant with fat untreated abscesses in ALL 4 feet:


























This elephant, I was told later, died within two years after my visit. If she would have been brought to the Elephant hospital in Lampang, Im sure they would have been able to cure her within six months.









An elephant at the hospital in Lampang gets professional treatment for foot problems, by Thailands most famous elephant Veterinary, Dr Preecha Poungkam, who I know since my visit to the government elephant training center in Ngao, back in 1988, and visited him again in 2011, taking this picture in the Elephant hospital in Lampang. I was also happy to initiate the support of Mrs Soraida Salwala, Dr Preecha, and the elephant hospital in Lampang, during my years as chairman for the Swedish organisation "Defend the elephants". I have no idea why Lek Chailert don't "trust" this place...

But one reason may be, that no elephant experts in Thailand, orThai veterinar or Thai officials, support the ENP elephant management.












This is a picture of the elephant Sri Prae and her newborn daughter Navann, born 2012-10-28.


Sri Prae arrived at ENP 2010-11-03 and there is no excuse whatsoever for the bad nails on the right font foot. Regarding the left frontfoot, as a previous mine accident elephant, she should have been provided not only normal foot care, but also intensive medical treatment, preferably at the Lampang elephant hospitals






Here I have filmed an elephant with foot abcess in Elephant Nature Park (ENP) in Thailand. Unsuccesful attempt to treat foot abcesses in all four feet on an elephant in an "Elephant sanctuary" in Thailand. Elephant hooks are officially prohibited, why the control of the elephants by the mahouts is radically reduced, resulting in almost no existing medical care of this, and other suffering elephants in the sanctuary.


































The film 1 and 2 shows an unsuccessful attempt by a veterinarian to treat foot abscesses in all four feet on an elephant in the park. The mahout could help the vet in one second, but the mahout is not allowed to use an elephant hook…


Elephant hooks are officially prohibited in ENP, why the control of the elephants by the mahouts is radically reduced, resulting in almost no existing medical care of this, and other kind suffering elephants in the sanctuary.


On the film number 3 you can see how ignorant the elephant is of Lek's presence. This is not love, but simply disrespect










ENP elephants poor foot condition has also been discussed by Carol Buckley at http://www.elephantaidinternational.org/pdf/ENP_Report2011.pdf:





"The majority of the elephants had severely overgrown nails and pads. In some cases the pads were deeply decayed and nails had chronic splits. Most had deep decayed crevices between and under their toenails. The overgrowth is a result of lack of sufficient exercise to wear pads and nails." and "Elephants who spend all day standing in one area with little activity except for short trips to the river for the visitor bath interaction, have seriously overgrown and decaying nails and pads.


Due to a lack of basic foot care, the elephants share common conditions. With few exceptions, this group of elephants has serious foot health issues including:

grossly overgrown and decayed nails and pads
chronic nail splits severely overgrown, cracked and dry cuticles bacteria growth in the pads and nails and between the toes foot and nail
abscesses deep pitted and rotting pad cracks stones,
pieces of wood and metal objects embedded in the nails and pads
The advanced degree of the decay seen in the majority of feet trimmed is harmful to the elephants, causing pain and lameness. Left untreated, the foot infections can become systemic and even life threatening.




Source: Carol Buckley
Records and numbers of elephants

On the positive side, Lek did let me get an insight in the records of elephants, which I went through, assisted by the American guide Jodie. But I started to feel alarmed, when I learned that the total turnover, as told to me, was over 70 elephants, that had lived on EEP .




Contrary to other institutions who provide me records, for my website www.elephant.se, where I keep the largest elephant database in the world, there was also, for some reason, reluctance to let me know where the elephants came from, when transferred to ENP, a lot of them were bought "from a camp further along the river", but Jodie didn't want me to know which?




Elephants were also transferred hence and forth between ENP and the neighbor camp, owned by Leks family, as well as with other camps around, and (cite):





The Park has different means in helping elephants and one of them includes allowing owners to bring their elephant to the Park for free food and healthcare.


This means that the exposure all the present elephants have had with other elephants dramatically increases risk of transfer of infections and diseases like Tuberculosis.



Tuberculosis

Theres an extreme physical interaction between ENPS elephants and the visitors and volunteers in the camp. A google search for: "elephant nature park" elephant kiss gets 53,600 results…






















The best trick was a sweet elephant that gave kisses.


She would press her trunk up against your cheek and give you a big wet smooch, complete with the kissing sound... (Source)


Unfortunately many women wants to kiss what they like, and often try to make their children do the same. But this human behavior can be very unhealthy and risky.






No information or warnings whatsoever is provided for the guests in regard to that many elephants suffer from lethal diseases, transferable to humans, of which TB or Tuberculosis is the most common.








TB is airborne and spreads through tiny droplets in the air. Symptoms of TB: chronic weight loss, diminished appetite, chronic nasal discharge, coughing, and intolerance to exercise, and abnormal volumes of drinking water.





It is not known if ENPs elephants have been tested (by anyone) for Tuberculosis, but no official records state they were tested by officials.




No official record of TB-testing





One of Thailand’s most well-known specialists on TB, Taweepoke Angkawanish, wrote me 20th of May 2013: “They used to ask me the possibility to do the test, but after that I have heard nothing.”


It is totally irresponsible to let foreign tourists play around with the elephants as they are allowed to do now at ENP, especially when the Camp owner has received an honorary degrees PhD in Sustainability and Conservation in 2002, and a PhD in Veterinary Science Rajabaht Chiang Mai University in 2006.


How easily is TB spread between humans and elephants?





From http://www.wormsandgermsblog.com/2011/03/articles/animals/other-animals/elephanthuman-transmission-of-tuberculosis/


“At the Elephant Sanctuary in Tennessee, USA, they took in two elephants that were known to be infected with TB in 2004. They were handled as per USDA Guidelines for the Control of Tuberculosis in Elephants (yes, such a document exists). One died of TB and the other was later released from isolation after treatment, according to the guidelines. In 2006, they took in eight more elephants from the same facility. All were considered high-risk for TB and were tested annually.


After being notified of the 2009 human TB test results, Public Health personnel launched an investigation. They eventually determined that 9/46 people whom they were able to contact had positive TB skin tests during the 2006-2009 periods, despite having negative tests before then (confirming that they were truly exposed during this period). The strange thing was that it wasn't only the people with prolonged, close contact who were infected. People who worked in the quarantined area in 2009 were significantly more likely to be positive, but of the 13 people that worked in the quarantine area, only one had close contact with any elephant. Furthermore, three of the people who were infected were administrators, working in a distance office building.”


An elephant at Elephant Nature Park with eye conjunctivitis.





















Compared to an elephant trekking camp where the tourists sit in a saddle far away from the trunk, the interaction between tourists and elephants at Elephant Nature Park is much more intensive, and with large risks of transfer of Tuberculosis from elephants respiratory organs and trunk the tourists.













Since there is no tourist riding operations with the elephants at ENP, the hand feeding of the elephants is much more intensive in other places, with increased risks for transfer of diseases like Tuberculosis. Meanwhile, the veterinary treatment seem to be very poor, or almost absent.









Often they are served all fruits by a bar, by the westerners, standing on a ramp, having pictures taken. Not having an idea which various bacteria's the elephant may have in their trunk.




This was called elephant public feeding in Zoos, and was mostly prohibited during the seventies, of medical and behavior reasons.


Elephant public feeding is a lot of fun for the feeders, but also creates wrong behavior patterns, for the elephants that in the wild search for food 16 hours/day. Elephants know how to eat themselves, they dont need to be hand fed. Both humans and elephants can carry diseases which are effectively spread by contact between the hands and the trunk, and the naive tourists.


Again, Carol Buckley seem to agree with me on this point:





Recommendations: Mahouts and the public should be taught a healthy respect for elephants and visitors should not have direct contact with the elephants (Source)


"Love" instead of a medical program, and a doctor





When I was listening to a heavily tattooed american woman, acting as guide, an unusually clever visitor asked if one of the most invalid elephant was suffering, she said,


"Oh no, not anymore, she knows we love her",

That elephant, on the picture below, belongs in a hospital, or even should even maybe be euthanized.













Pain and suffering, but no hospital doctor


I ask myself if any of the elephants gets any traditional pain-killing treatment? Elephants with broken legs and hips, not getting qualified veterinary treatment, should at least get the comfort of pain-killers, which are not too expensive... But the guide didn't mention anything about this, only "love". Whatever an old, suffering elephant understands from that, being exhibited for thousands of people every week, in order to bring an income to the owner...


Handicapped, malnutritioned, suffering elephants that had different kind of accidents, are more valuable, since the visitor "feel" more when then they look at them. An angry, healthy elephant that doesn't want to be kissed is not as attractive as a suffering one, that maybe would have been euthanized in a zoo. People enjoy looking on suffering animals especially if they can "help" those animals. To strengthen their identity, they want to believe that they are helping.



Trade in disabled elephants


Most populair sanctuaries buy or rent their handicapped elephants, but the term "buy" is not used, those elephants are always referred to as "rescued". (Political labels again...)




Such elephants are perfect for sanctuaries, often handicapped, weak, in terrible shape, they dont display a normal healthy elephant behavior.




Often being more or less powerless, they are seldom aggressive, so just about anyone can approach them without a hook and have an experience of looking into their mind, understanding them, and other bullshit people think they are experiencing when they look deep into the eye of a suffering elephant, whos pain could be released with euthanasia. Such an elephant is a good investment


In any case, elephants with extreme medical problems, should be taken care of by qualified professionals with access to modern medical clinic, with all needed tools to help the suffering elephants, who are in fact, patients. Not by amateurs, who trade, exploit and exhibit them in order to fill their own bank account from oversee paying visitors.



Diet and food issues


Apart from this, elephants are not really fruit-eaters, and all those amounts of sugar, is not healthy, what they need is branches, that's why they have so large molars. Most Zoos feed plenty of branches today, while some circuses may still ignore the elephants need for wood with cellulose, Tannin and other essential elements elephants need from branches.


I asked Lek why she didn't supply the basic food for her elephants, since I didn't see one single branch during my stay, and her answer was that it was too expensive for her to get. This could have been the answer you would expect from a small, poor European circus, but an organisation that has a daily income of over 10. 000 dollars, should be able to spend some on the food for the animals generating this income?


When I went though the records of elephants with guide, she said that the latest death, an older female, died because of tooth replacement problems, something that is directly linked to when captive elephants doesn't get enough branches.






Molar

Molar Appearance

Molar Loss


I

birth

2 years


II

birth

6 years


III

1 year

13-15 years


IV

6 years

28 years


V

18 years

43 years


VI

30 years

65+ years



Elephants normally change their molars six times during their lifetime, when older molar gets worn-out, they get replaced horizontally from new ones. When the last supplement gets worn-out, they die out of starvation. (The "natural" dead-cause of almost all herbivoures, which doesnt fall prey to predators.) In some cases, the replacement is difficult, and the molar has to be removed. Increased daily supplement of branches over several months may solve the problem, othervise the molar has to be removed by a Vet. The removal of an elephant's molar tooth is always a difficult surgical undertaking, although it has been performed successfully on numerous occasions - From my website www.elephant.se


So, although at least one elephant had already died because of tooth problems related to eating a lot of soft fruits, but not chewing any strong branches, still the park couldn't "afford" branches...


Leks response


As for the treatment of the elephant with abscesses, she seemed concerned, but not too much. She explained that she can't use hooks because if she would, her funding's would rapidly decrease. Which means that elephant had to suffer, in order to make her richer. Not OK to me...


On my question why she didn't send the most severe suffering elephants to an elephant hospital (there are several high-standard elephant hospitals, with very qualified veterinarians, in Lampang in Thailand) she replied that she didn't trust them. She also said that she had been thinking of establishing her own hospital on the grounds, on distance from the visitors, where mahouts could work with hooks. But I got the feeling this was not an immediate next step.


Probably she will spend more of her money on buying more elephants instead, which will bring more income, rather than invest in some quarters where the elephants could get adequate, professional, medical aid.


And concentrate her energy on making life more difficult for other elephant camps in Thailand.




A that time, I was still not so critical, but frustrated, and felt bad about some of her elephants.

Our conversation ended at a point when she accepted to buy a power washer, and let me show her mahouts how to use it for daily shower of the elephants, in order to improve hygiene and skin condition. (No, its not enough for them to stand in the river some ten minutes while volunteers throw buckets of water on them, a power washer is used in almost all Zoos today, in order to wash the elephants and rub their skin, a modern way of doing the classical mahout work, rubbing the skin with coconut shells for half an hour.)


She told me she would call me, once it was bought, and I was waiting three days in Chiang Mai, but in the end she never bought one. She let me waste three days, making me believe her lies.


That was the breaking point when I realized that she was not a stupid, ignorant and naive person, she's smart, and she can lie anyone in the eyes without concern, and make them believe that her elephants live some sort of paradise. And she obviously doesn't spend one penny if she don't have too, and if the visitors doesn't see that the elephants are poorly managed, she don't care if the elephants are suffering, or if she is hazarding their physical health, or her visitors safety .


She may actually be one of the worst example of the industry she's criticizing so much.


Something to keep in mind for the newcomers, young western people who copy her concept and establish their own elephant sanctuaries, reaching fame in short time, and getting donations from all over the world.


Lately, smuggle of baby elephants from Burma has been an issue in Thailand. Lek accuses many other camps from buying those elephants, according to Lek, kidnapped from their mothers and tortured with something she calls Phajaan. Visitors to the park must see this film before they visit the elephants, and they are told how all elephants are trained with this method. Afterwards, some 50% sign a sponsorship, and by this, she increases her income every day, by showing this film.


Read what Belynda Zolotto has found out about this "documentation" film.



DON'T BE FOOLED BY EMOTIVE ANTI-ELEPHANT TOURISM PROPAGANDA - PHAJAAN OR CRUSH


There are organisations and people out there that want you to believe and think there are 100's of crush phajaan torture training videos representing the cruel way in which ALL #elephants are trained in Thailand (wild and domesticated). I spent 3 days actually viewing them (it was difficult) and what I found was the SAME footage used in ALL those different videos.


The footage is filmed in the remote highlands of northern Thailand, west of the village Mae Jaem. Journos, photographers, PeTA and other interested parties were invited to witness this brutal centuries old ritual called 'crush' or 'phajaan'. This was organised by ENP (named Elephant Heaven at the time) in 2002.


How this was organised and planned in the first place should make one wonder.


A young female and a young male captured from the wild were put through this inhumane practice on separate days while the Westerners looked on documenting, photographing, and filming it - ENP & PeTA's emotive campaign to stop the traditional breaking of the wild elephant's spirit begins. You watch this video that looks disgustingly sickening and so blatantly cruel and downright torturous and you cant believe what you are viewing. Your heart aches (as did mine) for the poor wild young elephants that are and have gone through this. It has to stop! I 100% agree.


The video is going viral - our human emotion plays a big part, your emotions are outraged. The feeling one got from seeing this disgusting video, becomes a need to ensure your friends see it and feel what you felt. Everyone has to know about this cruelty that is inflicted on these young wild elephants, so you share and they share this new found knowledge about #crush/phajaan and ALL those wild elephants now working in tourism.


People write about it, people are talking about it, more videos are created using the footage, more photos are released, screenshots are taken from the videos to create posters etc all from that couple of days in 2002.


Now the Chinese whispers have set in - emotive headlines and photos, and general lack of peoples willingness to actually read detail or double check facts, because what they see and feel for some reason doesn't need any further investigation. The original information, all of a sudden is placed/branded on ALL and EVERY elephant in Thailand because in order to train an elephant it has been through this.


WRONG! So now from what began in 2002 about the phajaan/crush ritual for breaking the spirits of wild captured elephants to become submissive to humans in order for them to be trained has now been morphed into ALL and EVERY single elephant you see in Thailand. Especially if they are used for riding and painting and doing shows. This phajaan/crush technique is not necessary for domesticated elephants.


I have also noticed in the last 6 months some of the ppl who once used the words ALL and EVERY are now using the word "MOST". Lots of people realize if you see ALL and EVERY its a red flag and people are calling them out on it.


Not one person on this planet can use those words about training of Thai elephants, not an expert and certainly not a keyboard warrior.


The misinformed are misinforming others and now this morphed information has morphed into a campaign about anti elephant tourism.


Those involved in the beginning when it was about stopping the ancient cruel practice of breaking a wild elephants spirit will NEVER admit or try to clarify this because it has overtaken and helped their 2002 original campaign.


The Thai wild population depends on the Thai domesticated population to keep this species from becoming extinct - destroy elephant tourism, then one is fast tracking them into extinction.


Break it down and its as simple as that!


Again, I state, this crush/phajaan technique is not necessary for domesticated elephants.


So for those who say I need to do "research" about what really goes on with domesticated elephants in Thailand, and that Im ignorant or blinded by brainwashing and or that I choose not to see the truth; and that I should watch ALL those videos about phajaan/crush - think again and further your own research, but you will need to dig deep and sift through ALL that propaganda.


I challenge you to research the timeline of how the word spread about the "training" of Thailand's domesticated elephants and show me ALL those videos of different incidences of the breaking of young elephant's spirits that makes it "evidence" that this happens to ALL or even MOST.


The word 'phajaan' means divorce/separation. The true phajaan ceremony is used to give blessing and strength to the party/parties involved. Examples would be a married couple divorcing and want a ceremony to pray for strength to get through it; or a child leaving home to go and live far away will be separated from his or her's family; or an animal being separated from its mother; or a child going off to school. - Belynda Zolotto, 2016


Phajaan does not mean 'crush' or 'training' - it's a ceremony.







On the picture, is Tim Gorski.behind Sangduen, Gorski is said to have made the film about Paajan. To the right of Lek, is the filmer Adam Bromley, who died in April 2013. Was Bromley maybe a Tuberculosis victim? Diana Edelman writes on http://www.dtravelsround.com/2013/04/18/ode-friend/

“Then, over the next few months, more signs.“I’ve been coughing up blood lately,” he says over a cigarette. “I need to stop smoking. My lungs hurt.”He even leaves one morning to go to the doctor, but decides to return to the office because the line is too long. “I have too much to do for work, I don’t want to wait in line for this,” he says, brushing off the urgency.“


A film, done by Lek herself? Numerous people have told me you can hear Leks voice on the film..

Was she present when the film was shot, not interrupting what was going on? And today claiming this is whats going on everywhere in Thailand, blaming innocent persons (the mahouts in Thailand) for something they don't even know they are accused for, and can defend themselves from?




Why is she doing that? And why did she participate in fim where mahouts are instructed to abuse an elephant? I guess there may be one possible option.






Lek Chailert and PETA were in court with the Thai government over the Phajaan video. She's not allowed to sell the DVD but can take a donation as payment or something. And some 50% of her visitors pay cash and becomes regulair donators to her business company, after seeing the film.
Threat against species conservation

Through Leks ongoing critic against elephant ridings, performed by the Kui mahouts in Baan Ta Klang, and private elephant owners from Surin, who supply the elephants camps all over Thailand with riding elephants, she is also a threat against species conservation. If the Kui would loose their income from their elephants, they will most probably give up the breeding of elephants in Surin.


An animal rights activist, who dream about stopping elephant ridings in Thailand, may as well take an AK-47 and shoot one third of Thailands elephants, because the consequence would in both cases reduce the elephant population in Thailand.


Lek has joined the WSPCAs movement to stop elephant riding in Thailand. If this succeed, we will end up with some "sanctuaries" exploiting crippled elephants that naive people stuff tons of fruits into, while cative elephant breeding will become a memory from the past, resulting in a rapid local decline of the species.





18th of March 2016: "Success! Over 100 travel companies worldwide commit to stop elephant rides and shows" World Animal Protection "DONATE HERE!" Company


I have also heard, that the "computer" at ENP has been the source of some trip advisor bad reviews for her competitors. tA has had to remove some bad reviews on their competitors, because it was source back to an ENP computer/ip address. (Anon)
Smuggled elephants from Burma...

Contrary to what Lek Chailert and her boyfriend Darrik Thomson tells about elephant babies being smuggled in from Burma, and tortured, except for a few exceptions, all elephant babies in Thailand are captive born, a result from a lot of devoted work, and professional knowledge. The Kui people has a blooming captive breeding of elephants in Surin, but only as long as they get an income from their work. Its they who provide the next generation of elephants in Thailand. If their income would be taken away, chances are large that they would reduce, or stop their breeding of elephants, which would be the opposite what nature conservation is working for, in a situation where every single new born elephants counts.








But it seems that in reality, she is among the few that are in possession of a smuggled Burmese elephant, according to my source: “far mai or far sai . Something like that. Purchased from Surin as a baby after it was purchased from Burma by people in Surin”.









Faa Sai chasing a mahout on the ENP grounds.


About a week later, at the 26th of March, in Lampang, I had a meeting with three elephant experts, working in Thailand. We discussed different elephant issues in general, as well as the problems with Tuberculosis. At the end of the discussion Lek Chailert and ENP became a subject, and I was asked about mine impressions from the camp.



I was honest, and told about my anger and how disappointed I became over Leks reactons. I surprised myself with saying:


“I think some of the elephants should be confiscated from Lek.
In Europe, they would have been, long time ago.”

In frustration, I wrote a blog article with the title: Can elephants suffer in elephant sanctuaries, as an effect of volonteers exploit and opinions? This lead to some critical voices from animal rights activistst, but since I didn't point out ENP, there were no reactions from Lek & Co.



In 2012 I contacted Lek:

The 20th of October 2012, I contacted Lek Chailert through Facebook and asked her some questions, but had no real answers:





Dan Albert Koehl to Lek Chailert:


I wish we would have talked more, I wish I could understand you. I wish I would feel safe that whatever you do is not for the money, but something you truly believe in.


Lek Chailert:


Dan, What I do I never good to tell and I am not good for self promote. But I believed what my heart tells me, I believed what I do. My life it for animal, that I stay for that. My heart have no limit too love them, my heart it no boundary for animal. Since I work I have so much suffer from human who attacked me for some reason, but animal never do to me. They not want much from me only they just want plenty love and care, which is not too hard for me to do at all. They are the reason I want to stay for the long life to protect them .I have no children , why I need money for , I have not even my own house to stay , Park is my house and my happiness. I don't need no more. Thanks for understanding. Much love





22 nd October 2012: Dan Albert Koehl to Lek Chailert:


I believe you in this. Even though I became very angry when I visited you, I had problems being angry, because you are such a nice, wonderful person. And I do know you do so many good things, more than a normal person will ever do. Still, it seems that some things regarding your elephants, and their health and well being, get subordinate to a philosophy and a trend that comes from Animal Rights People in the west. Their hearts are not pure and clean, they make money on exploiting suffering animals and people’s feelings. A lot of that money comes into your pockets. At the same time, some of your elephants may need an intensive care which cannot be combined with the dreams of animal rights activists’ philosophy. Whenever we take care of an animal we must be professionals, and give it the best care possible, regardless of the fact, that laymen may be critical. I believe you must take this responsibility, even if the price will be that some people, who don’t know anything about elephants, will be angry. Your elephants deserve also a professional care, not just love on words, and love, in terms what stupid people can understand. Your elephants ARE your children. Children cannot just grow up with ice cream and chocolate. They must be well cared for, educated, etc. You know what I mean. I can see in your eyes that you are a very intelligent woman. How can you improve the care of your elephants, so they also get a scientific level of management, and that no professional can say that your elephants have bad skin, bad feet, and get wrong food? Those are very basic components in animal care. Laymen who come to visit you, don’t see this, they only hear the word LOVE. But you have money and resources to see to that your elephants look better than they do on a bad kept, poor circus. Why not start with this? It will do your heart good. You already know things are not OK, imagine how well you will feel, if you decide to run your place like YOU always wanted to take care of animals, not how romantic, naive people from overseas want you to run it? And I know that after all years, you know what your children need? Not just LOVE, but also professional care? I hope to convince you to look in your heart, and find the answer to this. OR even better, in your brain.




- But Lek never answered me on those questions... it’s the last time I heard from her, later she closed or Facebook friendship.





Leks present partner is Darrik Thomson, from Canada, who introduced himself as an animal rights activist, during my visit to ENP in 2011.






I had several dialogues with Darrik Thomson during 2013, but he also never gave an answer on my questions and critic of ENPs elephant management,


Once, when he made a Facebook share with an elephant baby happily laying in the sea, he made the classical animal rights activist remarks reg the elephant, mother had been killed, smuggled from Burma, went thorugh Phajaan, and now was abused in tourisms industry, the common propaganda intended to make people think they see something else than what they see on the picture, a happy, playing elephant baby.


I made some comments that this was not true, and Darrik joined the Facebook chat, and called me an elephant abuser. I replied by posting links to pictures I had taken at ENP, with an elephant with abcesses in all four feet. Heres the dialogue:


Dan Albert Koehl during my 40 years, that you refer to as abuse, I would never have seen this, neglected it, and let an elephant suffer like this. Never, and no collegue of mine neither.


Darrick Thomson We see this because this is how we received them you idiot !


Darrick Thomson We are a sanctuary, a retreat from abuse ! WE receive abused elephants ! and thank you for that..this is your work !


Darrick Thomson Are you so proud of this ?!


Darrick Thomson Arrogance of a highly limited species when there is no compassion !


Darrick Thomson just googled 'dan albert kohl' n got douchebag link..funny! Must be fan of CITES corruption n so much details, soon to be published


Darrick Thomson i am so proud to be an animal rights activist ! It is the best work that is happening in this world right now ! Everything turns on this dime ! Everything !


Darrick Thomson I show my workers how to turn 1000 pounds on a pebble..AR people, we are this pebble, and the world is ours !


Dan Albert Koehl at least I trained a number of elephants which the person who pretend to be expert on the topic, never did. And at least I treated and cured elephants with abcesses in their feet. Whatever I love is really not within your knowledge of reference.


Dan Albert Koehl you are googling the wrong name. spelling...




My last communication with anyone from ENP was in 9th of May 2013, when I asked Leks partner Darrik if they had tested their elephants,



Dan Albert Koehl:




Im interested to hear about your Tuberculosis situation at ENP.



1. Did you check all your elephants?



2. With which method?



3. Which veterinary or university did it?



4. What was the eventual outcome?



5. Can the documents be downloaded somewhere, are they publicly official?



6. What measurements has been taken since the tests and the analyzed material?



7. Can you guarantee your visitors health?



8. What actions has been taken?



9. Do you feel that it is important to inform the visitors to your camp about Tuberculosis and the risks when they have interaction with the elephants, or just stay at your camp?



10. Which test have you done with your staff, mahouts and others regarding Tuberculosis?




He avoided the questions, started to become rather unpolite, and blocked me from ENPs Facebook and some other places.





Thomson’s words below illustrates his replies very well:






I smile on you and I am sorry that you can only live out if that small space of hatred in your heart for 'animal rights' people. Almost everything you say is a twist on truth. Partial truths perverted for personal gains and still I smile. I am interested in your knowledge of our 'finances’. I wish that we had such success but as it is we move forward as we can..As for Cambodia, we paid nothing for that prospect and land use..We own nothing there but are just trying to secure a 'wild space for ele's and it is actually a beautiful space. I thought you would be happy, but once a critic always a critic. Our ele's there free roam grasses and trees and everything natural to them so your problem is?? And I don't actually care what your problem is because then it would seem like I care about your opinion. Luck t ya brother.


All of a sudden the statement below was to read on ENPs website:


2013-05-22: Addressing false claims — a statement from Sangduen “Lek” Chailert on behalf of Elephant Nature Park http://www.saveelephant.org/blog/addressing-false-claims-a-statement-from-sangduen-lek-chailert-on-behalf-of-elephant-nature-park/ “Tuberculosis is a concern at our park, however none of our elephants has the disease. We open our park to university and international veterinarians and the government to regularly test our elephants for TB. Should we even suspect an elephant to have TB, the elephant would immediately go into isolation. Additionally, should any cases of TB be reported, it would be made public.”




Apart from that is doesn't really help to isolate an elephant, that most probably spread TB to the rest of the group, this gives a tragic insight in the owners limited knowledge in the lethal disease TB.




After my unsuccessful attempt to communicate with the owners, I started to make some research about the Parks economy, and what critics had to say, and try to make a history timeline for Lek and ENP.



Timeline


From ENP website:






“Sangduen "Lek" Chailert was born in 1962 in the small hill tribe village of Baan Lao, two hours north of Chiang Mai. Lek received her Bachelor of Arts degree from Chiang Mai University and from there moved into working in the elephant tourist industry.”
1992





Lek claims that she, 30 years old, bought her first elephant, Mae Perm, in 1992.






But where was Mae Perm housed until 1996?


http://www.elephant.se/database2.php?elephant_id=1253






Lek Chailert seems to have the oldest elephants in the world breaking records of all documented old elephants in the whole world, by far: “At age 89 (2013), Mae Perm is still fully enjoying a well-deserved peaceful life at the park.”
















It’s also extraordinary, that this elephant, being the oldest elephants on earth (which is of course not true!) , looks like she is in her fifties. Remarkable, but maybe there’s a fountain of youth at ENP?


Regarding Mae Perm, she doesn't look that old, she is in extremely good condition, and so would have had a pretty good life, so rescued from? (Anon)
1995-1996


One source says:




“She operated the tour company at that time, Gems Travel at the night bazaar in Chiang Mai.


On Wikipedia is written: Lek and her husband Adam founded Elephant Nature Park in 1996.


But it seems, in reality that she founded Elephant Heaven Nature Park 1996, together with her family who was, and still is, involved in this camp, which is today known as her neighbor camp, now named Mae Teang elephant camp,



1997-2001



Later with boyfriend Paitoon, who changed his name to Poppol and is present owner of the restaurant Huan Hoy Kaew, on the way to Doi Suthep, she owned the elephant camp Jungle Raft. She had an Irish boyfriend later, and the Irish guy helped her a lot.
Later, until she found her present place, she started to use the Internet. On her website she had a shop; she sold t-shirts, elephant paintings, food for elephants, first aid for elephant, and the “Million dollar Baht for ultrasound donation project”. She collected money from people, without doing the things she said she would do for the money.
But later she destroyed every evidence”

Elephant riding




For a number of years Lek Chalert rented or bought, healthy elephants used as tourist riding elephants. But she had problems to compete with larger camps, who had been in the business longer.










Charles Bagley was there at the beginning when the people rode elephants. In fact him and his wife rode some elephants from central Thailand to Leks Not sure where they started the journey but it took like 2 months or something. Cant remember the details and then they lived at the park for a while like 2 years or something and people who came always rode the elephants.


The only reason they dont have rides anymore is because the safety aspect would have become difficult and then she got involved with the ARS. (Anon)
2001


Scott Murray writes in January 2001 on http://www.scottmurray.com/maetang_elephant_park.htm






“The park was started five years ago by the five Chailert sisters: their aim being to stop the elephants from being used for logging and to get them off of the streets of the cities. They took a simple rice paddy and transformed it into a beautiful park, which is now home to fortythree elephants and their handlers. The mahouts sleep in bamboo huts or hammocks besides the elephants.”

2003


Lek bought the new land for The Elephant Nature Park in 2003.

On Wikipedia is written about Elephant Heaven Nature Park:


This location was closed in 2003 as the Elephant Nature Park opened.
2006








Lek Chailert had no problem with tourists riding on elephants, as seen on this picture with a young woman, who is described as Thailands only female mahout, when staying on Elephant Nature Park during two weeks.






Along with some Brits, Canadians, a few too many Americans, Kate and I are spending 2 weeks building muck holes, shoving up to 60 kilos of pineapples into that trunk, and generally being holier than thou animal friendly crusaders fighting for the good of the common Asian elephant. Our biggest contribution though is money, 60 kilos is a lot of pineapple to purchase, but also we are here to spread the word and that's what I'm doing now. So rich foreigners who like to read blogs, come to Northern Thailand and visit this elephant nature park. If you can't make it this year, make sure you're all superior at the next dinner party when someone brags about riding an elephant. (Elephant woman, from the blog

The opposite end of travelling by Overland eddy from Australia)

She was also still working as Travel agent in 2006:






2007

Gem travel were involved till at least 2007.




An elephant baby was separated from its mother and bought to Elephant nature Park, only some 48 hours after birth. She died after two weeks, traumatized and out of anorexia. This was exposed for some time on ENP website, and later removed.
2009

The death of Max







There are two stories of Max death, the official story told in a ENP newsletter 2009:




http://elephantnaturefoundation.org/nl/2009-04/newsletter.htm










“As was expected, Max did lay down that night. In the morning he tried valiantly to get up on his feet, but his legs just didn't have the strength to do what he wanted them to do. We just couldn't put him through the indignity of being pulled up by the crane yet again, knowing how much pain he was in when standing and knowing when he laid down again we would be back in the same predicament.”










This story in poetic terms, presenting the death of a beloved elephant, is challenged by a second:





“I believe they (vets from TECC) anesthetized him because he had a long term infection in his tusk socket and he was down. and they went to put the retro activating agent in him (after they had treated the infection and the volunteers that were present protested as they said he should wake up naturally and the vets were intimidated and so did not dare to cross the angry visitors. He was under to long and ended up dying i guessed they used a heavy dose as he was a large bull.”




Tong Tae




From http://elephantnaturefoundation.org/go/entry1248 ENPs story regarding Tong Tae:





“But much to our surprise, a project with similar intentions sprung up in a nearby Karen village. Before our project could get up and running, Tong Taes owners decided to join with the other project which is now known as the Elephant Vet Aid Outpost (EVAO). As the months passed we received bits of information from various individuals regarding Tong Tae; he had been separated from his mother, his training had gone badly and he was now very aggressive but he was also afraid of everything. We felt so sad hearing about Tong Tae, but there wasn’t anything we could do- the owners had made their decision..

Finally on July 26th 2010 the owner called us and said that he would like to join our Journey to Freedom Project. We were so happy to hear this, but the happiness was short lived as on July 28th he called back to cancel. His reason for this was that he felt that if Tong Tae stayed with us he would become spoiled and uncontrollable because of the freedom that he would have. The owner felt that he would forget what he had learned (sadly, we have heard this in the past from other owners). After that we didn’t hear much about Tong Tae until our staff saw him chained on the side of the road with a banner from the EVAO, obviously trying to attract business. He looked hungry and stressed and had lost a lot of weight since we had last seen him, it was a really depressing sight. The next time a group of volunteers went to our Journey to Freedom Project and saw Tong Tae out on the road again; our staff stopped and asked the owners if it was ok to bring food for him.”
Finally on July 26th 2010 the owner called us and said that he would like to join our Journey to Freedom Project. We were so happy to hear this, but the happiness was short lived as on July 28th he called back to cancel. His reason for this was that he felt that if Tong Tae stayed with us he would become spoiled and uncontrollable because of the freedom that he would have. The owner felt that he would forget what he had learned (sadly, we have heard this in the past from other owners). After that we didn’t hear much about Tong Tae until our staff saw him chained on the side of the road with a banner from the EVAO, obviously trying to attract business. He looked hungry and stressed and had lost a lot of weight since we had last seen him, it was a really depressing sight. The next time a group of volunteers went to our Journey to Freedom Project and saw Tong Tae out on the road again; our staff stopped and asked the owners if it was ok to bring food for him.”










Another angle of this story gives different information:




Tong Tae stayed at ENP until December 9th 2009, when he was taken away WITH his mother. They had to be forced off the property by the mahout/owner as they didnt want to leave. It took almost two hours to get them on the truck and the screams and roars could be heard throughout the valley) and sent back to his owners village of Heuy Pak Kood. After being reunited with his mother for only a few months, Thong Tae was trained in April 2010 to live alongside humans at the village in the traditional Karen method.


2011




Lek Chailert and ENP cause problems for other elephant camps in Thailand





luckyarturo wrote on March 28, 2011 http://macnchis.wordpress.com/2011/03/28/chiang-mai-thailand-part-iii-final-the-elephant-trade/


“Their curriculum at ENP is clear-cut. They show a revolting video shot of trainers trying to break an elephant’s will. I haven’t seen it, I imagine it is revolting. So powerful emotionally that the next message that follows is apparently instantly embraced.. Elephant businesses in Thailand are cruel and unethical. Now I haven’t heard her delivery myself, but it seems other operators in Thailand have, including Pat, and it burns. There are first-hand examples of this, a good friend in NY went to ENP and when relaying to me her favorite parts of her trip, made it a point to warn me to go to ENP and not to anyone else because what they’re doing is torture. Echoed by a French couple I later met in Chiang Mai, shaking their heads with disgust for operators outside of ENP – “riding elephants is cruel,” they said. Whatever Lek’s message is, she’s succeeded in making herself out to be the shining angel/savior, and all others to be greedy detestable villains. A victory sold on manipulation?


Lonely Planet is on her side, ENP is featured as the place to go for interacting with elephants – if your morals are up to Harvard standards (In fact, ENP is the only sanctuary Lonely Planet lists of all the operators here.”


2012


Elephant nature Park was visited by officials, which led to major protests from animal rights activist from all over the world:


An even greater furore erupted when the Government decided to try and check the paperwork of every captive elephant in Thailand and the credentials of those who make money from them, as there is still no elephant camp licensing system this included asking for land ownership or lease documents from Phuket to Chiang Mai and, as far as I can tell, a visit by one or other relevant authority to every commercial elephant camp in Thailand.


This lead to multiple visits to certain camps (some of whom loudly protested that the fact they lacked paperwork, had failed to follow the law, should be ignored as they are obviously on the side of the angels - ironically, having failed to follow the relatively simple laws already in place some then marched on Parliament calling for tougher laws), camps without campaigning friends had their unregistered elephants and land taken, our friends at the Thai Elephant Conservation Centre were suddenly handed, without the chance to quarantine and choose, fifty plus elephants without mahouts or extra funding; just told to care for them.


One that had arrived with tetanus died and the furore erupted again, the owner of the elephant (despite photographic evidence to the contrary) claimed she’d handed over a healthy, fat, loved & cared for elephant, another that arrived with tetanus, others that had come with other diseases, were cared for in a Herculean effort by the TECC vets and recovered. But those who love a furore (particularly those with access to the furore creating blogs and petitions) screamed about the Government centres being nothing short of death camps for elephants. (Source: Blog of John Roberts, Anantara elephant foundation)








Cambodia


Lek Chailert has managed to get land in Cambodia where she has started a new project,


"In 2012, they got 10,000 hectares (which is 25,000 acres) (2.45 acres is 1 hectare or 10kmx10km). According to sources she paid 12 million dollars for the concession. The land seems to be risky for elephants, in a zone with a lot of landmines…" (Anon)






On the website of her “The Save Elephant Foundation” http://www.saveelephant.org/angkor_wat_wildlife_sanctuary.html


is written that she is working in collaboration with and The Cambodia Wildlife Sanctuary.






On the website http://www.cambodiawildlifesanctuary.com I found the email of the Deputy Director, Mr David Casselman, and wrote him to ask about the details their cooperation, but the email was returned with the text: “Delivery to the following recipient failed permanently:


David@cambodiawildlifesanctuary.com Technical details of permanent failure:


Google tried to deliver your message, but it was rejected by the server for the recipient domain”.


2013




Two female elephants, Kham Lin and Arun Reah (Etuk) were bought at Katieng waterfall in Banlung, Ratanakiri, and transported to the Seam Reap “sanctuary” in 2013-01-16.






On the website http://www.dtravelsround.com/2013/01/27/rescue-elephants/ is written:






“we are on a mission: to rescue two female elephants from their lives of work and deliver them to freedom at Save Elephant Foundation. Further text includes “Her previous life was in a small village which used to have 100 elephants. She is the last one. Because of inadequate (read: non-existent) veterinary care, each elephant has been chained up when they have gotten sick and left to die”






100 elephants died, really? Does anyone really believe that 100 elephants died in the village of Phum Kaepleng because of inadequate veterinary care? For certain, during my visit to Phum Kaepleng, no one told me that 100 elephants died there.






No further specific explanation what those elephants were “rescued” from, or anything indicating abuse of the elephants, bad health or likewise. “On pictures taken before and at the time of the transport, they looked healthy, and with good nails and feet.









The hanging stomach on this picture may indicate ventral edema, otherwise feet and nails seems to be in good condition..No obvious skin wounds from the saddle, and skin looks OK in general sense.


One month later, the new diet already had caused a physical change, which is told on the Cambodia Wildlife Sanctuary Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/CambodiaWS;



“Arun Rea has plumped up since she was brought to the sanctuary by Save Elephant Foundation. She very healthy now.”






How will they look, one or two years from now?






I visited Katieng waterfalls and Phum Kaepleng in February 2013, and had first-hand information about the selling price: 19 000 dollars for one, and 23 000 dollars for the other.






Before this, an elephant in Cambodia could be bought for 12-15 000 dollars. Lek’ s money talks, in the future it’s probably only she who can afford to pay for the elephants for sale in Cambodia, since she has created an inflation in short time.


There are still two riding elephants at the Katieng waterfalls, and you can see on the picture below, which I took, they have no obvious health issues, there is no need for a “rescue”. But Lek had already showed interest for those two...

















Lek always avoids to say that she buys and sells elephants, she prefer, as many sanctuaries does, to use terms like “rescue” which is a political way of manipulate people that she is doing something noble, when the truth is that it is her business. For each elephant that Lek rescues, her income from donations increases, and so does the income from increased number of volunteers.






She has also made a bid of 30 000 dollars each for two adult bulls in the Ratanakiri province.





If she purchase that bull in Phum Kaepleng (where she stated there’s no more elephants after she bought the two females), or another bull I saw in Borkao, east of Banlung, which she also made a 30 000 dollar bud for, and she intend to manage the bulls with same methods as at ENP in Chiang Mai, I believe there will soon be a death accident with people at her place in Cambodia..






It’s extremely important that adult bulls are managed by longtime trainer, any change of mahout will lead to unnecessary suffer for the bull, and death risks for the new mahout.


“Here, at Elephant Nature Park, looking after an elephant is a mostly hands-off affair. There is no riding the elephants (except for Hope) and no bull hooks. The way we see it, our mahouts should be listening to the elephants, NOT the elephants listening to the mahouts.” Cite from http://www.saveelephant.org/blog/meet-the-mahout-elephant-nature-park-medo/ where the chaining points can be seen.















On this picture with the bull in Phum Kaepleng, you can see the conditions where the elephants lived, a good environment for elephants along the Serepok river. If Lek wants to manage a healthy, strong bull like this bull, (who has lived with his owner in Phum Kaepleng in Ratanakiri all his life), like she manages her elephants at Elephant Nature Park, I believe that it will end very sad.


2013-02-19: Help ENP with US $ 2 million


Lek wanted to expand her land to the other side of the river; I don’t know if this is her families land, she want or another neighbour? (Follow the links) Help Purchase 200 Acres! www.saveelephant.org





Help us raise $2 million USD to purchase 200 acres so we have space to rescue more elephants.




Not bad, asking for funds to pay her own sister for land. Any risk for corruption?


Death of Kwanjaj


The latest death of an elephant at ENP was Kwanjaj, probably dead 3nd March 2013.


http://www.elephant.se/database2.php?elephant_id=6468





It seems the elephant was lying on the side in the sand for several days. No signs of slings etc to raise the elephant up. In the comments and the text is no veterinarian mentioned:





2013.02.01: “Ten mahouts help to hush Kwanjai up but cannot. We will try again later”


2013-03-02: “This morning we tried again but she still cannot. She even not help us to lift her head.”







There seem to be no tractors in Thailand, and ENP seem to lack tools and vehicles to even be able to raise a lying elephant into standing position. But Kwanjaj later got a lot of flowers spread over her dead body.
Critical voices


Organisations that has terminated their support of Lek Chailert:


Carol Buckley describe numerous issues at ENP, including wrong diet, bad feet and medical condition etc.in the document: FROM: Carol Buckley, Founder, Elephant Aid International, USA TO: Elephant Nature Park, Chiang Mai, Thailand Elephant Foot Care and Mahout training provided by Elephant Aid International: Summary of Services Provided, Outcomes and Recommendations: http://www.elephantaidinternational.org/pdf/ENP_Report2011.pdf



“Do you know about the charities that started in support of Lek and have closed down changed because she is a liar. http://www.eleaid.com/ Although this website seems to be active they dont seem to have done anything for years. Chad Begley came to see us and told us why he suspended the charity. Because Lek was increasingly manipulative, deceptive and a liar. You could try contacting him to get the information as me giving to you is hearsay. Also did you ever contact Linda Reifschnieder? she set up a charity for Lek in the USA (eleaid is in UK) and she got fed up with Lek as she would make Nature Park a foundation so she folded the charity and made Asian elephant support foundation http://www.asianelephantsupport.org/ How much they are prepared to tell you I don’t know but it would look bad for her. And who knows how many other places have left her. Apparently she is good at alienating her supporters due to her huge ego.”

I wrote to Rachel Begley in May 2013, and asked why they cancelled their support of ENP:





Dear Sirs, I have been told that you hve cancelled your previous suport of Lek Chailert, is this true, and can you provide me with details? Im doing a documentation on ENP





And she answered:


Dear Dan,


Thank you for your message. Unfortunately however it is not our policy to disclose reasons behind our decisions to support or cancel support of specific projects. However, if you have any particular issues that you wish to discuss, please get in touch.


Kindest Regards and sorry I cannot be of more help (Rachel Begley)
Citations from Tripadvisor


Upon arriving there, I was disappointed in the way animals are treated, not showing the slightest interest in them, rather than as a tool to make money. Too commercial unnatural, very fake.


Pay 75 € for watering elephants and see a horrible movie is not likely to meet us ... The concept does not correspond at all to what we can expect from a center that has undoubtedly things to show ... outside the single concept of saving money ...

We heard about this place as a haven for elephants and we find something like a circus. The visits are organized for groups of tourists, rather than participate in the daily life of elephants, are part of the show. The price, very expensive compared to the other activities in the area. No doubt you are doing a good job with the elephants but I found all too commercial and occasional tourist oriented. No repeat or recommend it.




http://www.tripadvisor.in/ShowTopic-g293917-i9325-k1588570-Elephant_nature_park-Chiang_Mai.html




Re: Elephant nature park

07 December 2007, 13:39

Hey - I went a few weeks ago and had a bad time... I went for 2 days with my boyfriend and it was way too busy - they really packed us in. Only enjoyed the place in the evening and early morning when it was quiet.

The elephants seemed crammed in too - they were fighting with each other and guys hitting them with big sticks - I asked our guide why they were being hit and she told us it is normal....

Sorry to say that Sydney Girl is right. I normally only lurk on Trip Advisor but I was disturbed enough to feel that this needed posting,

I visited the Elephant Nature Park last week also on a personal recommendation and was shocked with what I saw.

There were about 40 people in our day group which was far too many. The platform was crowded with people and we couldnt hear the guide clearly a lot of the time. There were also at least another 20 long term people on the course and at feeding time it was chaos with people pushing each other out of the way to feed the elephants.

The elephants were wonderful and there were some good highlights watching them play but there were too many in a small space and lots of pushing and fighting between them. I was told by one course volunteer that the previous week one elephant had attacked and killed another which suggests there are too many animals in a small space. If an elephant can be killed there must be a risk to people when there are so many there.

My friend raved about the elephant nature park when he visited two years ago but I think he would be very disturbed at what it has become. It looked and felt every bit like a tourist trap.




Re: Elephant nature park

13 December 2007, 11:49

had some friends who went there last week on my recommendation. they didn't like it at all. similar comments to others such as overcrowding, too many people etc. they were also concerned about the treatment. although they didn't see any heavihandedness, they did notice a couple of elephants with large red welts on the areas where mahouts control the elephants with there steel hooked sticks.

overall they were disappointed.

bkk3




Re: Elephant nature park

15 December 2007, 14:16

Perhaps you should come down from your high horse Emjay just because you have posted 2,500 times does not give you any more right to express an opinion.

3 people have posted that it was overcrowded, one of which you say you trust. Since all 3 posters have visited in the last month and you appear to have been there some time ago perhaps there is a possibility that there is some truth in their comments. All 3 posters also said that they had either been recommended to go to the Elephant Nature Park or had recommended it to other people so maybe things have changed at the Park. It does happen you know.

My motivation for posting was that if an elephant can kill another elephant at Elephant Nature Park and it is over crowded with visitors then there must be a risk to peoples safety. Surely this is something travelers have a right to know?




Re: Elephant nature park

18 December 2007, 12:06

I am glad that the Elephant Nature Park has responded to this thread and that they are taking steps to resolve the problems that they face. I hope they pay attention to the public safety aspects that hahave been raised but which were not specifically addressed by the post.

Reet, I regret that the thread has turned into an argument between us. It is quite clear that we both had very different experiences during our time at the Park. I can understand why you are so passionate in its defence and hope that you have an equally positive experience when you visit next year which I am sure you will report here.

I would like to deal with the main point in your last post that I am being ‘alarmist for no reason at all’. I do not see it that way. I work in health and safety and as a result find myself carrying out risk assessments as a matter of routine, an occupational hazard.

On our day at the Park the guide did give us a safety talk when we arrived but it was perfunctory and many people were not listening, as it was too big a group and they were excited by their first glimpse of the elephants. As the day wore on I began to feel that the talk had been inadequate. My uneasiness increased by the visible difficulties in controlling the large number of people, the behaviour of some of the people present and the number of elephants in a relatively small space. These were all observations I reported in my original post. The conversation I had with the course volunteer that an elephant had killed another was deeply worrying but our group as a whole was not informed by the staff even though it clearly has implications for peoples safety.

As you point out most of the above is opinion but as a health and safety professional I feel adequately qualified to state it and the elephant death is a matter of fact and one that should raise warning flags. If I was working and carrying out an inspection the Park would certainly have been instructed to take immediate action, institute an extensive independent risk assessment and put more adequate procedures in place.

Health and safety is based on the precautionary principle which states when we have a reasonable suspicion of harm we have a duty to take action to prevent harm whether the suspicions are empirically proven or not. I feel that this is certainly the case in this instant. I am aware that the H&S standards in Thailand are not anything like as rigorous as in the EU but when people’s safety is at a high risk they have an absolute right to be informed of the potential danger. There is nothing on the Elephant Nature Park website about risks, safety and procedures, the safety talk was, in my opinion inadequate and I feel perfectly justified in posting it here so people can make their own informed judgement

You ask ‘why not address your concerns directly with Elephant Nature Park, rather than getting on here and spouting off something like that.’ The fact is I did try to discuss these concerns with the guide towards the end of the day but he seemed indifferent and kept saying, ‘very safe, no problem’. Perhaps it was a linguistic difficulty, but it seemed to me he was more interested in directing people to spend money in the gift shop which was one of the main things that gave rise to my comment that it ‘looked and felt like a tourist trap.’ A cheap shot on my part? Maybe so, but I had no idea this thread would prove so contentious and give rise to such strong feeling. Perhaps I should have given my comments more thought. I have tried to address this lack on my part in this post.

It was not my original intention to post anything on Trip Advisor but on reading your instant dismissal of Sydney Girls post I wanted to reply to back her observations up. These were then given further weight by BKK. Perhaps I should have written a more thoughtful post in the first instance. I have now found myself in a debate which I never intended and it was certainly not my intention to offend merely to state an opinion which is why this forum exists.

As to posting positive things I have has a wonderful time in northern Thailand, visited some lovely places and met some wonderful people. I would love to post about them all but it will take an age and I have to return home on tomorrow.

I wish my visit to Elephant Nature Park had been closer to the experience others had but it wasn’t and I think I have now explained my reasons why. I hope to come back to Thailand next year and I am prepared to give the Elephant Nature Park another go if only to see whether what I experienced was an aberration or not. I certainly hope to find that from an H&S perspective there have been great improvements. If not I will have no problem in reporting it back here so that people can be warned of potential dangers to their safety.



…And then theres 10 deleted posts by Tripadvisor admins…




The latest from 22 October 2013 can be seen and read at http://www.tripadvisor.com.au/ShowUserReviews-g293917-d601884-r181910641-Elephant_Nature_Park-Chiang_Mai.html

“I booked the 1 day tour which advertises spending a day with the elephants, arriving at 9:30 and leaving at 5:00 and being taken around by an expert guide. We arrived at the park at 11:00, left at 3:30, and our guide, Bee, was by no means an expert. She gave us occasional details but nothing educational or of any real substance. Additionally, you don't spend a day with the elephants. In total we spent literally less than 15 minutes playing with them or feeding them. We walked out to watch them from a distance for about 20 minutes total, and the rest of the day you are told by your guide to explore, then left on your own. I would have been fine with that but you aren't allowed to leave the building so exploring is impossible! We sat around for hours in the midst of the other 150 or so bummed-out tourists there, hoping that an elephant would wander near the building so we could look at it. This place is not interactive AT ALL. It's closer to a zoo, but you can't go anywhere to look at the elephants you just have to hope that one wanders near the building. I agree with the mission of the place, but I don't understand why the tourists need to be there. We were also told that the place costs $250,000 US dollars to operate every year. If you multiply the 2,500 baht cost of admission by how many people come per day, the place could easily pull in 2-4 million US dollars per year! So I have no idea how the money is spent...we not only got ripped off but we wasted one of our few days in Chiang Mai! Huge disappointment.”




From vet123:

Yes, i think you are right, its about how much money they can make.

http://journeysforthesoul.wordpress.com/2012/07/07/elephant-nature-park-journey-for-the-soul-heart-and-mind/comment-page-1/#comment-152

“In the middle of the night, I woke up to roars and what sounded like a T-Rex (not that I know what they sound like). It was startling and realized the sound was coming from the elephants. I had no idea that elephants could make such a noise. This continued throughout the night and once the elephants made noise, all 100 dogs started barking too. It really was a jungle-like experience. I thought I was in Jurassic Park. My companion met me at the lodge for breakfast and Lek greeted our group. Eager to learn about the roars from the night before, we asked Lek. Lek explained that two weeks earlier, locals brought an elephant to the Park to be taken care of. The Park has different means in helping elephants and one of them includes allowing owners to bring their elephant to the Park for free food and healthcare. Taking care of an elephants is extremely costly and most locals cannot afford the upkeep. The ENP staff knew this elephant was pregnant but they did not know how far along she was. Elephants have a gestation period of 22 months.

That evening, the elephant gave birth around 2:00am. The baby was stillborn. After her third miscarriage, the mother elephant sobbed throughout the night. The roars we heard were cries of pain and sadness. The other elephants tried to console her by staying by her side, but she only wanted her baby. Lek and the other park rangers removed the stillborn baby from the area and the mother continued to cry. It was heart-wrenching to listen to Lek tell the story. I couldn’t believe that the sounds we heard from the night before were cries from elephants. I’ll never forget that night.”

But no stillbirth is reported, and no professional I know, ever heard about an elephant roaring hours and hours after a stillbirth. For laymen, this must be a fantastic story that Lek told them”.

Sally




I wrote to Tripadvisor in June 2013, asking them:






I think that an advice for families to bring their children to interact with elephants at a place that had a very large turnover of elephants (over 70) throughout the years, has to be combined with a small warning, considering that an average of Asias elephants are spreading Tuberculosis. To be on the safe side, dont touch the elephants, dont feed them, and wear some sort of protection masks.


TB is an airborne lethal disease, which is classified as Zoonosis, it can be transfered from elephants to human and back.


The Elephant Nature Park of course, would like you to be believe that theres no TB risk, but they have never informed about the risk on their website, or asked veterinarys from Lampang or Chiang Mai to come and check their elephants. Learn more:


http://www.elephant.se/mycobacterium_tuberculosis.php


It is not known if any of the 16 elephants that died at ENP went through a scientific autopsy:


http://www.elephant.se/location2.php?location_id=174&show=4


USA: According to page 21 of the APHIS manual on Guidelines for controlling TB in elephants: "It is essential that a post-mortem examination be performed on all elephants that die. The examination must inc...lude a thorough search for lesions of tuberculosis regardless of exposure status. Prior to any planned euthanasia of an elephant, trunk washes, blood for serology and any other ancillary tests should be performed regardless of whether or not TB is suspected. In this way, valuable data can be gathered to evaluate the efficacy of the current testing protocol. In the event of a sudden death, collect post-mortem blood and separate serum for other tests."


Iin USA today, 2 "elephant sanctuaries" are TB infected,


http://dankoehl.blogspot.com/2012/01/tuberculosis-in-two-elephant.html


in one 9 of the staff has tested positive for TB in one of those sanctuaries: " In this instance, TB spread to eight employees, though three of them didn't work directly with the elephant, "


http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/02/16/tb-elephants-in-tennessee-_n_824140.html


With all the best intentions to give families advice how to spend their vacation in Thailand, please at least inform about the medical risks.




They replied:


Hi Dan,

Thanks for your replies. We are a travel research company and we aren't affiliated with any of the properties on our site. We post real traveler reviews but we remain unbiased in regards to these properties and do not recommend any of them. If you like, you can post your information in one of our forums for people to read and discuss, possibly the Thailand forum.

I hope this helps!

Kind Regards,

Jeanine
TripAdvisor Support Team



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