Support slows for elephant rides
New study shows 9 per cent fewer find tourist activity OK compared to three years ago
When Jenny Cavcic got off the elephant she was riding on in Bali, she went around to look at its head. What she saw shocked her — bruises and scars on the creature’s head.
“They were blue and green,” the 30-year-old Toronto resident said. “And there was a male elephant beside this elephant, and looked much younger and he was even more bruised up — really blue in the head. I couldn’t believe that this was anything good.”
Cavcic booked a tour before she left for the trip in February 2016, which included an elephant ride.
One of Cavcic’s friends had posted photos on Facebook of an elephant ride he went on, so Cavcic thought it was an interesting thing to do.
But as soon as Cavcic felt the elephant skin under the sole of her bare foot, she said it felt wrong.
“It just didn’t feel right to be stepping on it,” she said. “It didn’t feel warm and fuzzy. As soon as I got on I felt something was wrong.”
Despite the rise in captive elephants used in tourism, a poll suggests 44 per cent of people find elephant riding acceptable, a drop of 9 per cent compared to three years ago, according to a new study released last week by World Animal Protection.
The research shows that more than 80 per cent of tourists would prefer to see elephants in their natural environment. This includes 81per cent of Canadians. However, Canadians are also among the most likely tourists, at 37 per cent, to watch a wildlife show, take a selfie with a wild animal, swim with dolphins, ride an elephant or visit other wildlife attractions when abroad, the study said.
The poll was commissioned by World Animal Protection and conducted by Kantar Public. 220 tourist venues were investigated across Thailand, Sri Lanka, Nepal, India, Laos and Cambodia.
Both the International Union for Conservation of Nature and the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species consider Asian elephants an endangered species. Thailand, the study said, uses twice as many elephants in tourism than all the other Asian countries combined.
Tourism to Thailand doubled from 15.9 million to 32.6 million visitors between 2010 and 2016, contributing to a 30 per cent rise (from 1,688 to 2,198) in captive elephants for tourist activities.
Melissa Matlow, legislative and public affairs manager of World Animal Protection, says tourists might believe giving people rides is an easy feat for elephants.
“Nothing could be further from the truth,” she said. “As they are wild animals, they must be trained in order to give rides and perform silly tricks. It’s a very cruel process that might last for a few days.”
Since 2010, more than 160 global travel companies have agreed to not offer visits to venues with elephant rides and shows, the study said.
These include G Adventures, Intrepid, TUI, the Travel Corporation (including Contiki and Trafalgar) and World Expeditions.
Jeff Element, president of the Travel Corporation Canada, said in a statement that his company recognizes the importance of continually adopting new best practices and policies in the interest of helping to advance the positive transformation of the industry.
Cavcic said within minutes of getting on the elephant, the mahout began hitting the elephant with a bullhook.
“The bullhook is made of metal — iron or steel and looked like a hammer,” she said. “And one end has a sharp end. He started hitting her with the sharp end and you could hear the hit, you could hear how it pierced into her skin.”