History
A century ago there were over 100,000 domestic elephants in Thailand. These elephants worked on farms, helped build bridges, houses, railway lines and were used to haul precious teak wood.
There are now thought to be only 6,000 elephants in Thailand. With the introduction of machinery and logging now outlawed,
there
is no longer an economic use for elephants.
A few elephants can still be found on the streets of Bangkok where their health suffers; some are involved in illegal logging,
accidents
happen, some suffer from exhaustion, or become injured by land mines put down to protect farmland.
The Thai Elephant Conservation Centre in Lampang, Northern Thailand provides a safe environment for elephants and their
keepers (or Mahouts) who train with them for their whole life. The animals are wild in respect that they leave the camp each
night for the safety of the surrounding forest and return each morning to feed, bathe and enjoy social interaction that they
truly love.
The Mahouts families and local people are employed by Mr Wanchai at elephantdungpaper.com to make the paper products, providing an income for the community. And as many tourists now want to visit the Thai Elephant Conservation Centre we can now help to secure the future of the Thai elephants.
