Lack Of Tourism In Thailand Has Resulted In Elephants Nearly Starving During The Pandemic

Chaiphorn - stock.adobe.com - illustrative purpose only, not the actual person
Chaiphorn - stock.adobe.com - illustrative purpose only, not the actual person

For many tourists who go to Thailand for vacation, taking a ride on the back of an elephant and getting a photo-op with the big, beautiful creatures is a must.

But most are unaware of how inhumanely those elephants are treated and how the pandemic has made things worse for them.

Jane Goodall, the legendary animal activist, is partnering with the Save Elephant Foundation and the Trunks Up organization to raise awareness of the abuse these entertainment elephants suffer and make sure they are not forgotten during these hard times.

Together, they have created the campaign ‘Foodbank: Battle For Survival.’

In March 2020, Thailand closed its doors to tourists because of the spread of COVID-19. According to a fundraiser for Foodbank, this led to over 3,5000 elephants used in the industry being held in camps where they are chained by the legs and neck for 24 hours a day.

In addition, the lack of tourism has led to a lack of funding for the elephant’s food.

According to the fundraiser, these elephants are near starvation, and each day is “another day closer to death.”

One year ago, the Save Elephant Foundation and Trunks Up created an emergency food and distribution campaign that helped support 223 camps and 1,826 elephants.

However, because there was no support from the Thai Government, their resources had depleted within months. This is still very much an ongoing issue.

Chaiphorn – stock.adobe.com – illustrative purpose only, not the actual person

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The ‘Foodbank: Battle For Survival’ campaign is on a mission to continue to raise funding that will allow them to purchase locally grown food to feed these starving elephants.

“The campaign’s goal is to bring immediate relief to these starving elephants through international attention to the tragic plight of these exploited animals,” is written on their Spotfund fundraising page. 

In a video Jane Goodall created for the campaign, she reminds viewers how terrible the mistreatment of these creatures is, considering their nature.

“What makes it so horrendous is these elephants are highly intelligent,” she says. “They have feelings and emotions.”

The Foodbank campaign outlines exactly how much it takes to contribute a certain amount of food to the cause.

For example, just $50 equals one ton of corn that can be fed to an elephant.

“The captive elephants of Thailand have so little time left. Already, many are falling down and dying while in chains,” says Lek Chailert, Founder of Save Elephant Foundation and Elephant Nature Park.

“This requires a dire effort and a compassionate response from all those who love the elephant.”

To read more about the campaign, visit the link here.

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