Chonburi zoo attraction forces elephants to swim underwater for people

[snoop1130]

Chonburi zoo attraction forces elephants to swim underwater for people

By Coconuts Bangkok

 

 

A large news agency recently released a surprising video that seems to endorse a possibly abusive elephant attraction that opened late last year at Thailand’s Khao Kheow Open Zoo. One of the park’s most popular draws, the elephant swimming pool attracts scores of families and children who watch the underwater show from the comfort of an indoor theater.

 

In the 49-second AFP clip, the elephant is forced to swim to the bottom of the pool six times as he is ridden and prodded by a mahout, who also pulls on his ears. On the other side of the barrier, children hit the glass and try to get the animal’s attention while hordes of parents film the sad event.

 

The elephant, meanwhile, seems for all the world like it’s simply trying to get back to the surface to breathe.

 

 

Full Story: https://coconuts.co/bangkok/news/chonburi-zoo-attraction-forces-elephants-swim-underwater-people-video/

 

-- © Copyright Coconuts Bangkok 2017-6-9

[champers]

Calling yourself an open zoo may give the impression that all animals are free to roam in roomy enclosures. Sadly, this is not so. You can also feed caged tigers from the end of a metal spike at this place. I'm sure the elephants swimming underwater is more entertaining for the mostly Chinese and Russian punters, many of whom will be well used to such cruelty from their own countries. 

[wakeupplease]

But farangs  pay 10x local to watch cruelty.

 

[mok199]

Asians respect nothing but food,to most, everything is  a meal or to be smoked, made into tea or worn as shoes or handbags...but,im sure money is a close second..

[KittenKong]

I've yet to see any animal "attraction" in Thailand that would not be closed instantly in the West. Utterly shameful.

[PremiumLane]

1 hour ago, mok199 said:

Asians respect nothing but food,to most, everything is  a meal or to be smoked, made into tea or worn as shoes or handbags...but,im sure money is a close second..

You do know that 'Asian's don't all think the same, there isn't some weird hive mind that makes them the same - or are you just being a good old fashioned racist?

[canuckamuck]

Pretty hard to tell from the video how the elephant feels about it. He might think it's fantastic.

How many other elephants got a pool to play in?

[Denim]

What's all the fuss ? Everybody knows animals were put on the planet purely to be exploited by human beings.

 

 

Weren't they ?

[JamJar]

This is most unfortunate.

Khao Kheow Open Zoo used to be an amazing place to visit, until they decided to turn it into a money making opportunity. Fees for non Thais went from 75 baht to 300 baht and the emphasis move to 'shows'. Perhaps justify the ridiculous increase in entrance fee to 'tourists'.

[Dibbler]

Not sure how many people understand that elephants naturally do swim and spend a lot of time in the water.  Here we have a captive elephant splashing around in a pool of water the difference being that underneath the tank are a group of watching tourists. I have visited this exhibit and while its sad that elephants have to be captive I didn't sense that the elephant was being mistreated. Most of the time the elephant was swimming around by itself with the mahout struggling to catch up.  The mahout had a life vest on and clearly the elephant was able to dive and bounce around in the water much more freely than the mahout. Except for the cat exhibit the animals at Khao Khieo generally have much larger areas to move around in.  I don't know enough about nutrition and medicines available for the animals but Khao Khieo seems a much better place to visit with kids than the terrible Safari World where animals really are tortured (examples include boxing orangutans), and the cramped Dusit Zoo in central Bangkok.

[Muggi1968]

How do the little elephant cowboy force the big elephant to dive ??
It could easy crush him ..... 

[stanleycoin]

The caring side of Thailand,

in all its glory 

[KKr]

17 hours ago, wakeupplease said:

But farangs  pay 10x local to watch cruelty.

 

Simple, don't go and donate the money saved to a animal cruelty charity

[khunPer]

Not sure it's not a natural action from elephants that love to bath and swim, even in sea water and underwater...

 

This elephant, for example, seem to enjoy underwater swimming...

 

Please check sources, before complaining...

Several web-pages – for example Wild Animal Park and Swimming and diving elephants – states, that elephants love to swim and dive...

 

"Can elephants swim and dive?

Like all mammals (except humans and apes, who have to learn how to swim), elephants are very good, untiring swimmers.
Elephants move all four legs to swim and are able to move quite fast like that. Their big body provides enough floatation while the trunk acts like a snorkel."

 

"Elephants love water and are great divers. You will often see an elephant sticking its trunk up for breath and disappearing under water for a considerable amount of time. Baby elephants enjoy playing in water. They will often try to climb on the backs of older and bigger elephants and then splash back in the water. Calves will suck water into their trunks and spray each other playfully..."

 

"Elephants do not tire easily when swimming, but if they do, they will just rest in the water for some time. Because of their buoyancy they do not drown. Elephants in Africa have been recorded to have travelled a distance of 48 kilometers across water, as also swimming for six hours continuously. Experts believe that the elephants that live in Sri Lanka are the progeny of elephants that swam across from Southern India across the sea. What appears as the only constraint that would make an elephant seek land when swimming is hunger and thirst when in sea water."

[jaywalker]

I have a Golden Retriever that LOVES to swim.

 

Many animals like to swim. I do.

 

 

 

 

Edited June 10, 2017 by jaywalker

[mok199]

555

Edited June 11, 2017 by mok199
misquote

[mok199]

On ‎6‎/‎9‎/‎2017 at 8:44 PM, PremiumLane said:

You do know that 'Asian's don't all think the same, there isn't some weird hive mind that makes them the same - or are you just being a good old fashioned racist?

oh im not an old fashioned racist,im sure that would offend some one...im a very current progressive racist...

[Johnnyngai]

On ‎6‎/‎9‎/‎2017 at 7:54 AM, mok199 said:

Asians respect nothing but food,to most, everything is  a meal or to be smoked, made into tea or worn as shoes or handbags...but,im sure money is a close second..

Third world Asians behave just like Europeans before becoming filthy rich from colonialism.

[gk10002000]

pretty disgusting.  The elephants might enjoy a little swim, maybe reward them with some fruit on the other side, or just let them bath naturally.  But making them go down is just nasty

[IDP1]

On 11/6/2560 at 2:38 AM, jaywalker said:

I have a Golden Retriever that LOVES to swim.

 

Many animals like to swim. I do.

 

 

 

 

My dog loves to swim too. But I don't jump on him or hold him submerged under water. This is the difference between swimming and water boarding, and it's disgusting.

[jaywalker]

2 hours ago, IDP1 said:

My dog loves to swim too. But I don't jump on him or hold him submerged under water. This is the difference between swimming and water boarding, and it's disgusting.

Some folks get offended/disgusted at everything I suppose.

 

Can you read the elephant's mind?

 

For all you or I know, he might be enjoying every minute of it.

 

Kinda like this dog appears to be doing.

 

Elephants and dogs can be trained, but you'll be hard pressed to force either to do anything they don't enjoy doing.

 

How, exactly, can a man hold an elephant under water?

 

 

Edited June 12, 2017 by jaywalker

[gk10002000]

3 hours ago, jaywalker said:

Some folks get offended/disgusted at everything I suppose.

 

Can you read the elephant's mind?

 

For all you or I know, he might be enjoying every minute of it.

 

Kinda like this dog appears to be doing.

 

Elephants and dogs can be trained, but you'll be hard pressed to force either to do anything they don't enjoy doing.

 

How, exactly, can a man hold an elephant under water?

 

 

a man can't hold the elephant under water, but he can pressure the ears and sensitive points, and the animal learns to not disobey or it gets punished.  Sometimes of course the animal has had enough and it reacts violently

[jaywalker]

3 minutes ago, gk10002000 said:

a man can't hold the elephant under water, but he can pressure the ears and sensitive points, and the animal learns to not disobey or it gets punished.  Sometimes of course the animal has had enough and it reacts violently

My heart bleeds.