Reading this thread is like a waterfall of ignorance and shitshow.

I’m no expert on animal husbandry, and in particular elephant sanctuaries, but I have recently been to one.

That being said, I’m sure there are elephant sanctuaries that treat their elephants bad, just as there are good ones. I can’t say which percentage of the sanctuaries are good/bad and I doubt any of the posters here can enlighten us on that.

What I can say is that these are NOT wild elephants. I was told there are roughly 12k wild elephants in Thailand.

These elephants are bought from farmers that are unable to sustain/feed the elephant from the work they are being used. Apparently it’s not uncommon to earn 500 Baht (ca 15 USD) a day as a farmer, and that is not enough to buy the 10% of body weight in food for the elephant. Elephants are often inhereted as they cost around 1 mill Baht (2,5 for baby).

So… Domesticated elephants can’t survive alone in the wild as they have been bred out some of the skills to manage on their own. So a mismanaged elephant is better off being sold off to a sanctuary that can care for it until it dies. Which is the purpose of sanctuaries - put an elephant out to pasture.

The sanctuary I visited only had female elephants and was but interested in breeding elephants - because they are not in it to add more domesticated elephants, but rescue elephants that need help. I’m sure other sanctuaries manage male elephants, I can’t say how they deal with mating and pregnancies in regards to rescue other elephants in need Vs “free elephant” for tourist trap.

TL;DR Post in this thread acts like domesticated elephants are a wild animal like a boar. It’s more like a cow that weighs 4-6 tonnes. Death by cow occurs every year, you don’t go screaming about that when it happens between your bites of hamburger. It’s of course horrible for the family of the poor girl being killed. Hopefully humans and elephants will get the treatment they need and deserve.

That would be glorious! But I’m seriously scared for Ukraine and Europe while Amexit happens…!

The beatings will continue until moral improves.