COCERNS about the care of a young elephant on Phuket, left chained for long periods to attract tourists, were dismissed by the owner of the animal today.
The elephant, Lucy, is three years old. One Phuket resident who passes Lucy regularly said: ''It makes me so upset and sad. She always looks so miserable.''
Lucy's carers also own Lily, another three-year-old, who plays with guests at the Sheraton Grande Laguna Phuket Resort, and Gigi, just 18 months, a more recent acquisition.
The veterinarian from Phuket's Department of Livestock Development, Dr Jirayu Niranwiroj, said today: ''I haven't been notified about Gigi's presence on Phuket. The owners of all elephants on Phuket have to let me know when a new elephant arrives.''
Gigi's owner, who only wishes to be known by her nickname Pui, said that Gigi arrived on Phuket with a leg injury that her husband ''has the medicine to treat her. She is not hurt too much.''
Passing tourist who see Lucy sometimes stop and buy bananas to feed to her.
Khun Pui said Lucy needed to be tethered with a chain because she was young, not yet trained, and therefore could get into mischief.
She rejected suggestions that the elephant was mistreated, saying that families of tourists often came from Kata and Karon to be entertained when Lucy took a bath behind the souvenir market.
Gigi is kept in a rubber plantation behind the Phuthai Souvenir Market in Chao Fa Road West, where Lucy is tethered in a concrete area out the front, under a thatch-roofed sala.
The elephants recently moved with the market from a site near Tiger Muay Thai, on Soi Taead, a road nearby that runs between ChaoFa West and Chao Fa East roads, south of Phuket City.
Khun Pui said that she would readily sell any of the elephants to the people who were concerned for their welfare - asking 1.2 million baht per elephant ''to return them to the forests.''
About 185 elephants entertain tourists on Phuket.
Phuket 2010: Elephant Rampage, and MoreThe elephant, Lucy, is three years old. One Phuket resident who passes Lucy regularly said: ''It makes me so upset and sad. She always looks so miserable.''
Lucy's carers also own Lily, another three-year-old, who plays with guests at the Sheraton Grande Laguna Phuket Resort, and Gigi, just 18 months, a more recent acquisition.
The veterinarian from Phuket's Department of Livestock Development, Dr Jirayu Niranwiroj, said today: ''I haven't been notified about Gigi's presence on Phuket. The owners of all elephants on Phuket have to let me know when a new elephant arrives.''
Gigi's owner, who only wishes to be known by her nickname Pui, said that Gigi arrived on Phuket with a leg injury that her husband ''has the medicine to treat her. She is not hurt too much.''
Passing tourist who see Lucy sometimes stop and buy bananas to feed to her.
Khun Pui said Lucy needed to be tethered with a chain because she was young, not yet trained, and therefore could get into mischief.
She rejected suggestions that the elephant was mistreated, saying that families of tourists often came from Kata and Karon to be entertained when Lucy took a bath behind the souvenir market.
Gigi is kept in a rubber plantation behind the Phuthai Souvenir Market in Chao Fa Road West, where Lucy is tethered in a concrete area out the front, under a thatch-roofed sala.
The elephants recently moved with the market from a site near Tiger Muay Thai, on Soi Taead, a road nearby that runs between ChaoFa West and Chao Fa East roads, south of Phuket City.
Khun Pui said that she would readily sell any of the elephants to the people who were concerned for their welfare - asking 1.2 million baht per elephant ''to return them to the forests.''
About 185 elephants entertain tourists on Phuket.
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Tourist come here and believe the lies that elephants are revered here but what they don't know is that elephants are treated extremely badly.
Thank you for exposing just this one example. The price is very high and buy means buy, not donate to keep the money and elephant.
The elephant can not be returned to the jungle..... This Pui person must really think you are stupid to be saying that.
Trekking is bad enough but at least they get some exercise in between beatings and they are not killed like an elephant recently slaughtered at a temple and sold off in pieces as reported by one of the larger newspapers in Thailand (are we allowed to say the Nation here?) It was a male about 13 that came from Phuket.
I have some idea first hand what kind of beatings the elephants must get just to be able to perform tricks and dance in shows. Disgraceful treatment of the revered animal
Please follow up and see what the livestock officer does. I will forward your email to WFFT and Bless to sanctuaries in Thailand.
Posted by Nbotwin on January 20, 2011 12:33