The word mahout comes from Hindi and means a person who drives elephants. Traditionally a mahout will stay with one elephant for life, training the animal from a baby. Unfortunately some of the training methods used involve what we might refer to as torture since the animals are caged, beaten and starved into submission. Even today mahouts use a spiked stick to control the elephants movements.
Fortunately for Thailand’s Asian elephants there are more and more sanctuaries cropping up across the country where animals are taken when they are no longer needed for work in industries like logging. In the main these places do care for the elephants although in some cases the animals are now exploited to satisfy the desire of tourists. Providing treks and rides. A few unfortunate animals can also be seen in the big cities like Bangkok where the mahouts make a lucrative living by working the tourist areas.
The elephant in today’s picture is bathing in the River Kwai near Kanchanaburi, the young mahouts seem to be enjoying the water as much as the elephant. The sanctuary here does provide elephant rides and the elephants have been used in a beer Chang advert for Everton Football Club but overall the animals seemed well treated, having spacious enclosures with young elephants being allowed to roam free.
Equipment: Canon EOS 1000D 55mm Lens
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