Video shows brutal training of baby elephant in Thailand

Images of a baby elephant in distress, being tortured to be trained to join the tourism industry, have been released by conservationists in a call to end the practice.

The footage, taken last year by a hidden camera and released on Wednesday by the UK-based animal rights organisation World Animal Protection (WAP), shows the forced separation of a two-year-old baby elephant from its mother.

Watch the hidden reality of the physical and psychological trauma of elephant training for tourist entertainment. https://t.co/Yis6mUUlja

#travel #wildlife #elephants #travelgram #tourism #captiveelephants #Thailand #COVID19 #babyelephant #EndWildlifeTrade #animals #covid19 pic.twitter.com/ktthwf1qof

- World Animal Protection India (@MoveTheWorldIN) June 24, 2020

The helpless cub is confined to a small space called a "crush box" and held together by chains and ropes for days as it struggles to escape.

The calves are repeatedly hit with a hook to make them understand the basic commands, which sometimes causes bleeding.

Approximately 3,000 domesticated elephants work in the tourism sector in Thailand, used for rides and to give tours to travellers.

Animal rights activists have long argued that elephants are abused in the tourism industry, starting with the so-called "crushing" process to train them when they are young.

"We have to make sure this is the last generation of elephants used for commercial tourism," WAP wildlife veterinarian Jan Schmidt-Burbach told AFP.

WAP did not disclose details of the location of the camp to avoid repercussions for the people who shot the video.

To avoid starvation, as the coronavirus has put an end to international travel, hundreds of elephants have returned to their home villages with their carers.

See : Unemployed elephants return home

But Thailand's plans to ease some travel restrictions in the coming weeks, if the virus remains contained, have environmentalists fearing the return of the "crush".

Perhaps the coronavirus will put an end to these barbaric practices once and for all.

Some camp owners who used to offer elephant rides have already decided to reorganise their activities:

"After visiting the Elephant Nature Park At the end of the year, Kalampichit saw how happy the elephants were to be free and decided to shift the park's focus from animal shows and rides for humans to educating the public about elephants.

Read the full article : 78 elephants freed in a Thai park thanks to the coronavirus

Source: bangkokpost.com