I visited the tiger temple in February 2008, and the account by Seville is absolutely consistent with my own observations.
Further, there seemed to be an unwillingness and inability to provide proper answers to important questions concerning the welfare of the tigers (it is afterall supposed to be a sanctuary!). In my own experience, the monk handling the tiger cubs completely ignored reasonable queries, and the behaviour and responses of all handlers (including this particular monk) seemed to be devoid of a level of expertise required to appropriately CARE for the tigers, certainly with THEIR best interest as the primary purpose of (what cannot in any way be called) 'a sanctuary'.
As one example, I witnessed young cubs (without their mother) being literally closely chased at times by thirty or more camera-happy tourists whilst they attempted to run and explore, which can only be described as invasive to the tiger cubs. Even the handler attempted to prevent this relentless hot pursuit, although the tourist numbers really were against him. It suggests an environment that is foolishly out of control and which requires serious outside expert intervention without delay.
The tiger temple is questionable in the extreme. It represents nothing more than abuse and tragedy, so consistent with other accounts of animal exploitation in Thailand and other parts of South East Asia. Just another opportunity to attract the tourist dollar using the guise of benevolence.
First off I have not been to the temple, but have volunteered at two wildlife rescue centers in Thailand and two in the U.S. all four are strongly against exploiting wildlife. What I am posting below was sent to me from WWFT and is what they send to people inquiring about volunteering there, especially when the Tiger Temple is mentioned.
My understanding is that there are strong efforts being made to take the animals away from the abbot and find more humane homes for them.
Something about the infamous tiger temple:
After hearing many complaints about the place from tourists and volunteers (we have even had volunteers come here after they left the tiger temple sick after a few days of volunteering), we visited the tiger temple with representative of international animal welfare / wildlife conservation organisations earlier this year. Short summary:
There are animals locked up in tiny, un-enriched enclosures.
Tigers are showing signs of malnourishment, e.g. sight defects. They have been fed on dogfood and chicken - an incomplete diet for felines.
Tigers are reported to be beaten and abused into submission (negative-reinforcement techniques), in order that they can be handled and paraded in front of the abbott and the tourists.
The monks / handlers do not have any training or equipment for tranquilising animals and therefore have no form of emergency control if a tiger goes bezerk. They rely heavily on negative reinforcement to keep the tigers docile, but there is always the risk of an animal getting out of control.
Tigers are chained up outside for several hours without shade or drinking water so that tourists can take photos of themselves with the tigers.
The initial 4 tigers have rumoured to have actually been bought by the abbott from an illegal wildlife trader, mixed species have been interbred and there are now at least 17 tigers from a limited gene-pool. The conservation value of this is more than questionable.
The tigers have been officially confiscated by the government, as the abbott has no legal documentation or permit to keep them. However, as the government have no-where else to take care of the animals, they remain under the "care" of the Tiger Temple.
The abbott himself is not open to constructive criticism of his operation or support from organisations wishing to improve the welfare of the animals and safety of the staff/volunteers/tourists.
Approximately 300 tourists pass through each day, each paying a mere $10 entrance fee plus extra fees for "special" photos with the tigers - i.e. approx. $20000 per week is cashed in, excluding further donations, and there is little sign that this is being spent on the welfare of the animals.
Apologies if this sounds harsh, but we like to be hard and to the point. If your aim is to volunteer for an organisation that has a high regard for the welfare of the animals, then we do not recommend the Tiger Temple in Kanchanaburi. If your aim is however to touch/pet wild animals, take your photo with them and generally exploit them for your own personal enjoyment and experience, then please do not consider applying to us as this behaviour is against our principles. For your information, we also have a campaign against wildlife exploitation in tourism, some information is on our website here: http://www.wfft.org/campaigns.htm
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Thew Tiger Temple - Is It A Travesty?
in Central Thailand
Posted · Edited by rubierred
I visited the tiger temple in February 2008, and the account by Seville is absolutely consistent with my own observations.
Further, there seemed to be an unwillingness and inability to provide proper answers to important questions concerning the welfare of the tigers (it is afterall supposed to be a sanctuary!). In my own experience, the monk handling the tiger cubs completely ignored reasonable queries, and the behaviour and responses of all handlers (including this particular monk) seemed to be devoid of a level of expertise required to appropriately CARE for the tigers, certainly with THEIR best interest as the primary purpose of (what cannot in any way be called) 'a sanctuary'.
As one example, I witnessed young cubs (without their mother) being literally closely chased at times by thirty or more camera-happy tourists whilst they attempted to run and explore, which can only be described as invasive to the tiger cubs. Even the handler attempted to prevent this relentless hot pursuit, although the tourist numbers really were against him. It suggests an environment that is foolishly out of control and which requires serious outside expert intervention without delay.
The tiger temple is questionable in the extreme. It represents nothing more than abuse and tragedy, so consistent with other accounts of animal exploitation in Thailand and other parts of South East Asia. Just another opportunity to attract the tourist dollar using the guise of benevolence.