Getting up close and personal with Asia’s giants is top of many Southeast Asia bucket lists. But how can you tell if an elephant sanctuary is really ethical? When it comes to elephant tourism, there is no black and white (elephants are grey after all! ?) so it is always important to do your research.
We’ll be the first to ‘fess up… although a team of animal lovers, we at Southeast Asia Backpacker are not experts when it comes to elephant tourism. So, to help you learn how to choose a truly ethical elephant sanctuary, we’ve reached out to our contacts at several ‘hands-off’ sanctuaries to ask their expert opinions on a number of controversial topics!
Related: (opens in new tab)
- Top 3 Elephant Sanctuaries in Laos
- Ethical Elephant Sanctuaries in Cambodia
- Recommended Elephant Sanctuaries in Thailand
- Amazing Elephant Sanctuaries in Chiang Mai
How to Choose an Ethical Elephant Sanctuary
Hands Off!
👉View our list of ‘hands-off’ elephant sanctuaries in Southeast Asia here. You can now book your visit via our website! 🐘
??You can view a list of fully ‘hands off’ elephant sanctuaries in Southeast Asia here and book your experience via our website!
What Makes an Ethical Elephant Sanctuary? – 10 Myths Busted!
1. Are Elephant Performances Okay?
What People Assume…
This is an easy one. If the elephant is forced to wear clothes, paint a picture or perform any kind of dance or trick, then you can be pretty sure that you are not dealing with an elephant sanctuary.
The consensus is that people should avoid any kind of camp or circus that offers these performances. This same rule can be safely applied to animal performances by all species. Monkeys, snakes and bears can sadly also be found ‘performing’ across the region.
What The Experts Say…
Jack Highwood (Managing Director at Elephant Valley Project in Cambodia/Elephant Valley Project, Chiang Rai, Thailand) – “No, tricks and performances are ever acceptable. Sure, target-train the elephants and perform clinical or health check procedures too. Have trained professionals work with them and have visitors observe but they should not perform tricks purely for a visitor’s pleasure.”
2. Is It Ever Okay to Ride an Elephant?
What People Assume…
Elephant riding is no longer considered acceptable, although you will still find many elephant camps all over Southeast Asia offering it. One point that still causes controversy is the distinction between tourists riding an elephant and a mahout doing so. Some people will say that the former is never okay, while the latter will be, depending upon the circumstances.
What The Experts Say…
Jack Highwood (Managing Director at Elephant Valley Project in Cambodia/Elephant Valley Project, Chiang Rai, Thailand) – “It is not acceptable for tourists to ride elephants. The riding of elephants should only be done for a specific purpose and carried out by qualified and (more importantly) experienced people.
I will give you an example. I have a 23-year-old bull elephant, a tusker who weighs around 4,000kg. He is calm most of the time but can get nervous and his ‘go-to response’ when this happens is to become aggressive. All our male elephants have two or three mahouts who are responsible for the elephants’ care around the clock and they are responsible for the elephant. In turn, I am responsible for their safety.
If I unchain this bull and don’t ride him, he will be fine for about two days before he wants to attack another elephant or kill someone. If I chain him at night then this could be three days. If I have one of his mahouts ride him then he won’t attack anyone but the mahout, unless the mahout has a bullhook. Then he is fine. We keep trying different methods to condition him to not be ridden but it always ends in four tonnes of tears.
At the end of the day, I am not prepared to have visitors or staff members injured or killed in our quest to give this elephant a better life. So this bull elephant has someone sit on top of him eight to nine hours a day. We don’t hit him, beat him or control him with fear or pain, we can just talk to him and nudge him with our toes but that mahout does need a bullhook in case something goes wrong. In exchange, he lives with other elephants, eats a natural diet, grazes in forest and grassland, and is not chained up in a barn.”
Sébastien Duffillot (Founder of Elephant Conservation Center, Laos) – “At the ECC we do not offer people elephant rides. We do not encourage riding either. I believe that sanctuaries should not propose/promote riding as the purpose of a sanctuary is to provide conditions as close to the animal’s natural environment as possible.
However, I think that if performed under certain conditions (permanent access to food, water, shade, one person per elephant maximum), elephant riding can provide both an income for mahouts and physical exercise for elephants. The current aggressive campaign against riding from several ‘animal welfare groups’ doesn’t provide any answers or solutions but instead merely demonises elephant riding and local mahouts, which is detrimental to the animal in the long run.
Indeed, if tourism (the major employer of mahouts and elephants currently), is boycotted, what will happen to the elephants? Without an income, mahouts will not be able to keep their elephants and will be tempted to sell them to zoos or circuses or go back to working with illegal logging companies. Returning elephants to the wild is not always possible… So, what’s next?”
3. Is Bathing Elephants Ever Ethical?
What People Assume…
There is considerable controversy over whether or not bathing with elephants is ethical. While many tourists long for this unique experience, some experts claim that it’s not natural for elephants to bathe so often, especially with humans present.
Many elephant sanctuaries that recently offered bathing are now banning this activity. Often, the motive for this decision is that it’s an activity carried out for the benefit of the tourist rather than the elephant.
Elephant expert, Lek Chailert, founder of Save Elephant Foundation and Elephant Nature Park, says that bathing is a fundamental habit of elephants and one that is better done alone. If humans are present, the elephant is not able to ‘let go’ properly and is not behaving naturally.
If bathing with tourists takes place, the mahout is forced to restrain the elephant more (to prevent them from injuring the tourists) and they are not able to splash around in the mud, an essential daily habit of the elephant. (Elephant bathing was banned at ENP last year.)
Another claim that is often made is that elephants would not spend so long in the water of their own accord. Therefore, this could be damaging to their skin, as well as being emotionally draining.
What The Experts Say…
Jack Highwood (Managing Director at Elephant Valley Project in Cambodia/Elephant Valley Project, Chiang Rai, Thailand) – “No. Bathing with elephants is not acceptable. Only a qualified elephant keeper should wash an elephant. It is not safe for the visitor and it stresses out the animal because the elephant does not speak [insert non-Thai language here]. We used to do this, it wasn’t safe and we stopped.”
Sébastien Duffillot (Founder of Elephant Conservation Center, Laos) – “A sanctuary must allow elephants to behave naturally. Elephants need daily access to water, but they must choose to go, or not, and stay in the water as long as THEY want. Bathing with elephants is extremely dangerous, as visitors can get stuck in the mud and rolled over by an elephant. And, organising a bath for tourists to partake in means that the elephant will be ‘forced’ to enter the water or stay for an amount of time that doesn’t correspond to its needs/choice. Observing an elephant bathing is wonderful and harmless, and this is what should be proposed.”
4. Should Elephants Ever Be in Chains?
What People Assume…
This is an extremely divisive topic. On one hand, many travellers are appalled the moment they see an elephant chained. On the other, it’s believed that the use of chains can save the lives of visitors and mahouts alike, as well as save other elephants from each other e.g. through aggressive encounters and unwanted sexual advances.
When we first began writing on this subject, we claimed that elephant chains were a complete ‘no-no’ when it comes to ethical elephant sanctuaries. We received an onslaught of criticism for this. We will instead leave it to the elephant sanctuaries (the experts!) to unravel this complex issue.
One point that can be universally agreed upon is that the chain length makes a substantial difference to the well-being of the elephant chained up. At the very least, a longer chain is better than a shorter one.
What The Experts Say…
Jack Highwood (Managing Director at Elephant Valley Project in Cambodia/Elephant Valley Project, Chiang Rai, Thailand) – “There may be a time when the use of chains and bullhooks are called for, e.g. when it is necessary to protect the safety of the keeper and the elephant. With these tools, we can provide a better quality of life to elephants that would otherwise be chained up and hidden away. However, it is completely unacceptable to abuse these tools and in turn the elephants. The correct training is paramount.
I have been working with elephants for a long time now, and they are incredibly complicated. Some elephants you can leave in a patch of forest and they will happily stay there for a long weekend, others can be aggressive and if left unchained they can (and have in the past) attack people.
At Elephant Valley Project in Cambodia, the elephants are old and the sanctuary is more like an old people’s home for elephants. They like soft food, half of them have arthritis and pop enough pills to make any granddad proud!
Some elephants we chain and some we don’t. It really depends on the day of the week and the elephant. Here in Thailand, the elephants are younger, faster, more virile, and quick to injure but also quick to heal. Still, they are equally fascinating. Here we chain the elephants, on long (12, 15, 20-metre) chains and fresh ground, every couple of days.”
Sébastien Duffillot (Founder of Elephant Conservation Center, Laos) – “Long chains (30-50 metres) can be used to keep elephants at night in venues that are established near populated areas or without effective fencing. If elephants can leave the sanctuary and access villagers’ crops or homes, there are disastrous results. As long as elephants can access food and water, and communicate with other elephants, the use of chains at night is not detrimental – provided they are long enough and tied up correctly (not too tight).”
Ava Lalancette (Never Forget Elephant Foundation) – “Enclosures are very expensive to build and not every project in Thailand has the money. Encouraging ‘ethical chain management’ where elephants are on long chains, with access to natural food and water should be a priority in the industry.
The reality of the situation is there are thousands of captive elephants in Thailand and expecting everyone to use a chains-off approach is a) physically not possible, b) unrealistic, c) not safe for the elephant or humans and d) further alienates projects that may have no other financial choice but to use chains.
The enclosure replicates the same intent as a chain, but does putting an elephant in an enclosure without access to natural food/water make it more ethical versus having her on a long chain where she has space to herself and has access to natural food/water?
I really feel that we need to encourage places that do use chains to do so in a humane manner, rather than saying chains are not ever okay. At Never Forget, we do not use chains on our elephants, however, I feel very strongly that we should be coming together and not alienating those who have no choice but to use a chain.”
5. Are the Use of Bullhooks Okay?
What Is a Bullhook?
A bullhook, also known as an elephant goad or ankus, is a tool used by elephant handlers or mahouts. It is basically a stick with a spike on the end that mahouts jab into sensitive areas (such as behind the ears) to control the animal.
What People Assume…
Any tourist who casts eyes on this instrument can be forgiven for thinking that it looks like an instrument of torture. However, after speaking with several experts and founders of elephant sanctuaries, we have been told that the bullhook is sometimes necessary, especially when it comes to the safety of visitors and mahouts. They even say that without it, more deaths would occur… Let’s not forget that elephants are wild animals!
What The Experts Say…
Dr Ingrid Suter (Elephant Conservation PhD) – “There have been MAJOR issues at ‘no hooks/no chains’ camps. Earlier this year, at the Boon Lott Elephant Sanctuary, Katherine (the founder)’s husband, was killed by his very own elephant. He was a very experienced mahout but was forced to work within the confines of the ‘no hook’ policy that Western tourists seem to approve of so much.
Similar deaths have occurred at other ‘no ankus’ camps (for example, Elephant Nature Park). If used correctly, the ankus is not a cruel tool. The ankus can save a life if an elephant is spooked – mahouts must have access to an emergency instrument.
Do travellers care about mahout deaths, or are locals viewed as expendable? Western media ignores the human casualties of the ‘no ankus’ camps, and continues to say that these camps are the most ethical! The Western hysteria surrounding hooks and rides needs to stop. Yes, elephant camps need to improve their practices (and they are!) but this should not occur at a human expense.”
Sébastien Duffillot (Founder of Elephant Conservation Center, Laos) – “The use of a bullhook must be strictly reserved to life-threatening situations where the elephant is out of control and the life of mahouts, staff, visitors or other elephants are at risk. The bullhook has always been part of the normal kit of mahouts for generations. The important question is how/when to resort to using it.
Overzealous mahouts exist, and visiting camps where elephants have permanent bloody markings on the forehead should be avoided and the problem reported. An elephant weighs between two and a half to five tons. If it goes into a rampage, the situation can get out of control and become deadly. The mahout has to keep control over their elephant when the latter is ‘under human care’. Stating otherwise is ignoring the reality of elephant handling and being very loose on safety.
Those claiming to employ mahouts that do not carry a hook are either playing with the lives of their staff and visitors and/or using this argument for marketing purposes. Don’t get me wrong here. I am not promoting the use of chains and bullhooks. But when working with elephants, safety must be the top priority. Elephants can be extremely dangerous and it is the responsibility of the sanctuary’s management to ensure a maximum level of safety to whoever gets close to the elephants.”
Jack Highwood (Managing Director at Elephant Valley Project in Cambodia/Elephant Valley Project, Chiang Rai, Thailand) – “Bullhooks are a very contentious issue. Any sanctuary that takes care of elephants and says they don’t use them or at least have them on-site, is doing one of two things. They are either lying to you or being quite stupid to not have one at hand in the case of an emergency.
The fact of the matter is that everyone has bullhooks, but the difference in a real elephant keeper’s mind is not if you have one but what you do with it. A policeman and a gun is a good analogy. Depending on the situation, it is quite accepted in the majority of police forces for policemen to carry guns. In England, not every policeman has one, we have dedicated units, but the police force as a whole still has them on hand. They are not judged on if they have them but on how they use them.
At the EVP and the EVT, this also applies to our work. We have bullhooks onsite and they are there to regain control of aggressive elephants. If the elephant is calm and there is no issue, then we do not need them. But they are still there. It’s an uncomfortable truth for many who lie or do not have them but elephants are wild dangerous animals. At elephant sanctuaries, we often work with the most damaged creatures who have been abused both physically and mentally.”
6. Is Touching Elephants Okay?
What People Assume…
The majority of people still appear to think that touching elephants is fine. It is, of course, necessary at certain times for certain people (a visit from the vet, for example). However, there is a recent move towards ‘hands-off’ policies with tourists. As an adult Asian elephant weighs around 3,000kg and their trunk can easily lift weights over 300kg, this ‘hands-off’ policy is promoted as a safety measure, as well as for the elephant’s wellbeing.
What The Experts Say…
Emily McWilliam (BEES Elephant Sanctuary) – “Although BEES has adopted a strict hands-off policy, we (Burm and Emily) do not expect other sanctuaries to do the same thing at this moment in time. We feel that right now, the most important focus in elephant facilities should be on providing quality care to the elephants and staff – the facilities should not offer riding or force performances.
I strongly believe that the future for elephant tourism is in high welfare facilities that offer limited to no interaction. But right now, the reality is there is not enough funding and resources available to make these ideals. We must continue to support quality facilities and encourage the shift by ensuring they have the income to support the livelihoods of the elephants and people that work with them. Without funds how can they feed their elephants, pay their staff and provide quality care?”
Ava Lalancette (Never Forget Elephant Foundation) – “We do touch our elephants at Never Forget, but since they are free roaming in the jungle and are free to come up to us if they wish, we believe it’s safe/fair for both us and the elephants. I personally feel there are instances when touching is not okay given the environmental circumstances e.g. limited space, unnatural environment, number of animals at a facility, etc. In other situations where the elephant can make a free choice and is not enticed with food, it is okay to touch them.
Access to natural food and environment are very important topics that also should be noted – does the elephant have access to food other than corn stalks, fruit and rice balls with medicine, for example? If they are being touched, what is their life like – do they have a large number of people touching them every day and can they go somewhere else if they don’t want to interact with humans? Is the elephant in their natural environment or as close to their natural environment as possible? This is the most important point to look at.”
Jack Highwood (Managing Director at Elephant Valley Project in Cambodia/Elephant Valley Project, Chiang Rai, Thailand) – “No. Elephants, like ourselves, have a personal space requirement and sanctuaries must provide this. If you, the visitor, can hug an elephant, sit under an elephant, ride around on an elephant, or get sat on by a baby elephant, this is not an elephant sanctuary. It is not safe.”
Sébastien Duffillot (Elephant Conservation Center, Laos) – “The less physical contact with elephants the better, for safety reasons. However, patting an elephant when the mahout is in control and has given his green light is perfectly okay if those elephants are gentle and do not participate in a conservation programme (reintroduction into the wild, for example) that requires to de-impregnate elephants from human activity.
If not done on an industrial scale (like some places where splashing elephants is encouraged and hundreds of backpackers a day end up splashing the elephant’s face, which is stressful…) touching an elephant is not bad, if conditions of safety and welfare are met).”
7. Where Do the Elephants in Sanctuaries Come From?
What People Assume…
Many travellers believe that the elephants in sanctuaries have been ‘rescued’. This is to say that someone, in the dead of the night, with a big lorry, stole the elephant away from a circus or a riding camp and took it to the safety of the sanctuary.
The Reality…
What many people don’t realise is that the elephants that you will find in elephant sanctuaries across Southeast Asia have either been bought, (having been previously owned by a mahout family or another elephant camp or zoo), or they are currently being rented. There are many differing opinions on whether it is better to buy or rent an elephant for a sanctuary.
Elephants are extraordinarily expensive and can cost up to $50,000USD. The Elephant Valley Project in Chiang Rai, Thailand, told us that a docile 55-year-old elephant is the most expensive kind of elephant at around 1.5 million Thai Baht (or $46,000USD). An aggressive 22-year-old bull can be half that price.
This is because a sanctuary wants relaxed animals to present to tourists. Bulls are more difficult to handle and require more control, some of which can be controversial in the eyes of paying visitors.
Sometimes elephants will be rented from a mahout family. This is a good way to keep the original owners involved in the changing face of elephant tourism.
What The Experts Say…
Sébastien Duffillot (Elephant Conservation Center, Laos) – “One important point to look at when travelling to elephant sanctuaries is the ownership of elephants. If elephants are purchased by the sanctuary or are being donated/placed by their owners to enjoy a better life, then the sanctuary will likely treat them with the best available care.
On the contrary, if elephants are rented, it is almost impossible for the sanctuary’s management to enforce welfare or breeding programmes without the consent from the elephants’ owners/mahouts… In this regard, it is worth asking about elephants’ ownership as it will probably influence the quality of welfare provided to the animals.”
John Roberts (Co-chair of Asian Captive Elephants Working Group) – “In Thailand, we have seen that almost every purchase of an elephant, usually from a traditional mahout family or a tourism camp, results in the purchase of another elephant. The family or the camp owner goes on to make a living with the new elephant in the same way they did before.
In this way, even an elephant purchased for ‘rescue’ will result in another elephant being bred and trained, before (most often) moving into the tourism business. An unfortunate downside of the ’sanctuary’ industry is that they require older, docile elephants so end up buying elephants that families would be otherwise looking to retire.
Such is the business they can ask for enough money for the family to buy a baby elephant and start the cycle again – when I first came to Thailand 16 years ago a retirement-age elephant would be donated to the government or looked after at home, often by a retired mahout – it was seen as part of the deal of being an ‘elephant family’. Nowadays these elephants fetch the highest prices at sale.
If we care about the welfare of elephants we should not encourage the purchase of elephants in Thailand for any reason (unless you can personally follow the money trail) because the vast majority of purchases end up restarting the cycle with a new baby elephant who will live for another 70 years.”
8. Do Elephants Born in Captivity Have Their ‘Spirit Broken’?
What People Assume…
When people first learn about Pajaan they are shocked. This unsavoury practice was bestowed upon baby elephants, after they were caught in the wild, to make them submissive to humans. Ancient stories suggest that the captors believed that they were separating the “evil wild spirit” of an elephant from its body so that it could be controlled. However, in reality, it was simply torturing the animal so that it would be afraid to disobey its master.
Many believe that Pajaan happens to all baby elephants born in captivity. However, not all elephants in sanctuaries across Southeast Asia have been through Pajaan.
What The Experts Say…
Dr Ingrid Suter (Elephant Conservation PhD) – “Not all elephants used in tourism have experienced Pajaan. Thirty years of captive elephant tourism has seen an entire generation of calves born into captivity. Positive training and verbal commands are taught from a very young age. Indeed many calves at elephant camps are spoiled rotten!
The outdated stereotype of all elephants going through a spirit-breaking trauma needs to stop. There is simply no need for Pajaan and harks back to the lazy stereotype of all mahouts being cruel tormentors, needing saving from themselves.”
9. Why Can’t Captive Elephants Be Released Into the Wild?
What People Assume…
Several animal rights activists believe that all elephants should be reintroduced into the wild and that sanctuaries should not exist at all. The issue is much more complicated when you consider that some elephants in sanctuaries have never been wild animals and many continue to be born in captivity.
What the Experts Say…
Sébastien Duffillot (Lao Elephant Conservation Center) – “It is possible to release elephants into the wild. However, many criteria must first be met: the size of the protected area/size of ranger teams, law enforcement, ranger presence, technology (GPS collars, drones, camera traps…)
We at ECC are currently experimenting with releasing elephants. So far it has proved successful but it requires a lot of work and the presence of teams in the field to make sure poaching is avoided and the elephants are safe. But there’s hope it can be achieved!
I would like to contribute this: many elephants are the property of private owners and as such, releasing them means buying them first (at $50,000USD each) and making sure their owners are ready to sell them (they are usually their owners’ only means of subsistence). There’s a socio-economic aspect too.”
Pssst! 🤫 If you want to see elephants in the wild, Southeast Asia is one of the best places to do it!
10. Should You Ever Boycott an Elephant Sanctuary?
We spoke to Dr Ingrid Suter about her thoughts on boycotting elephant sanctuaries. She told us: “At Asian Captive Elephant Standards (ACES) we believe respect and communication with elephant camps is the best way to improve elephant welfare. Bans and boycotts don’t achieve the desired result, in pretty much all areas of life. Engaging and educating camp managers on best practices will reap more elephant welfare benefits than saying all captive elephant tourism is wrong.
ACES wants to ensure that if camps offer riding, the howdahs (carriage seats) fit perfectly, the elephants do not walk in extreme heat, they have continual access to fresh drinking water, and they are not overworked. All of our standards have been created by Asian elephant experts, academics and veterinarians. We would never condone cruel or tortuous camp behaviour. But we also believe that elephant riding or bathing can be done without causing stress or harm to the elephant.
Again, all scientific evidence points to this but is overlooked by animal rights activists and admittedly, an industry with a historically poor track record. Travellers should be aware that industry reform is currently occurring. Good change is happening.
Visit an elephant camp with internationally-recognised camp standards. This way travellers can be sure that all areas of elephant welfare have been considered. Elephants are a true wonder of nature and people should be able to enjoy their elephant experience in Southeast Asia without feeling guilty.”
Above all, it is important to do your own research. If there is a camp/sanctuary you are interested in visiting but a little unsure about, see what others have said about it online.
By making an ethical choice, you can rest assured that you are positively contributing to the lives of these wonderful creatures and are sure to leave with memories that, like the elephants themselves, you will never forget.
Resources and Further Reading
- Congratulations! You boycotted an elephant camp! Now, what happens? – This article, written by Dr Ingrid Suter of the group “Asian Captive Elephant Standards” was sent to us by more than one of the elephant sanctuaries that we contacted. It challenges some of the consensus.
- In Defence of Elephant Tourism – Another article written by Dr Ingrid Suter about the positive role of elephant camps and sanctuaries.
- The Asian Captive Elephant Working Group – ACEWG is a group of elephant specialist veterinarians and scientists who have come up with the closest thing possible to expert consensus. They’re using that knowledge to identify research questions and improve the welfare of captive elephants.
- Center of Elephant and Wildlife Research, Chiang Mai University – There’s been some interesting work done by Chiang Mai University on the stress levels of elephants in camps across Thailand. The organisation is the only one to have performed a large-scale study on Thai elephant camps (including stress hormone measurement) and to get it statistically analysed, peer-reviewed & published.
- This study, entitled “Management factors affecting adrenal glucocorticoid activity of tourist camp elephants in Thailand and implications for elephant welfare” is, at the time of writing, the most up-to-date attempt to scientifically evaluate the elephants’ experience.
Nikki Scott | Founder & Editor
Nikki is the founding editor of South East Asia Backpacker and The Backpacker Network. In her early twenties, she left her home in the North of England on a solo backpacking adventure and never returned! After six months on the road, she founded a print magazine that became legendary on the Banana Pancake Trail. The rest is history.
