ELEPHANT ISSUES

Captive elephants used to provide tourists with rides are fitted with a saddle known as a ‘Howdah’ this is often left on the elephants throughout the day even when they are not providing rides. This can be very uncomfortable for the elephant and in many cases the straps holding the saddle in place rub against the elephant’s skin, leading to the development of pressure sours.

 

Elephants have not evolved to carry the weight of three or four people on their backs, and they do not have the strength in their spines to do this for long periods of time, thus the use of elephants for riding can lead to the development of spinal problems for the elephants. 

 

Captive elephants at tourism camps are deprived of the ability to perform most natural behaviours. They are either confined, tethered, or under the ankus of the mahout. Most important, they are deprived of choice: choice of behavior, social encounters, activity, cognitive engagement, foraging, foods, resting times and places – in short, everything with which a free animal occupies him or herself all day is denied and replaced by human-mandated activities. The combination of boredom, frustration and fear can cause severe pathology.

 

Elephants may not show overt signs of distress. Chronic stress is internalized to engender physiological and psychological changes that make the animal ill over time. Chronically high levels of cortisol, immune suppression, structural changes in the brain, cognitive dysfunction, heart disease, kidney disease, weakening of the muscle structures, and endocrine disturbances are but some of the problems which chronically stressed animals may suffer from. Poor veterinary care and compromised immune function from stress can result in high parasite burdens, nutritional disturbances, viral infections, and wounds that do not heal.6

 

Tourist elephants are often badly overworked, and are forced to work in environmentally taxing conditions – direct sun, in the heat of the day, often with little access to food and water and with few opportunities to rest. 

 

During the times when the elephants are not being used to provide rides or perform tricks, elephants are often chained for extensive periods. In many cases they are provided with little access to shade and little or no access to water. Elephants are highly social animals and normally live in close, stable groups of an extended family of females. Chaining often provides them with limited or no social interaction, and is likely to cause them a significant amount of stress, which can result in the manifestation of behavioural abnormalities. 

 

Stereotypies tend to increase in frequency with increasing restraint of movement and with more barren environments. For instance, circus elephants kept shackled or picketed, weave and head-nod more than in paddocks 

 

The development of lameness is also common in elephants which are forced into performing circus tricks. These joint problems as well as hernias are thought to result from circus elephants repeatedly assuming unnatural positions during performances.

 

Many facilities chain elephants on hard surfaces, such as concrete and tarmac, this is likely to lead to the development and/or aggravation of foot and joint problems. Nail splitting and arthritis, are some of the most common health issues seen in Asian elephants in captivity.  

 

Nail splitting is also aggravated by poor diet, and elephants displaying stereotypic weaving behaviours where the weight on individual feet is being continually transferred.  Performing stereotypic behaviour may cause uneven and excess wear  and/or abnormal pressure on the lateral toes of the front feet where most foot pathologies are situated. The trauma from performing repetitive actions could contribute to the development of osteoarthritis.

 

Malnutrition has also been reported in captive elephants and can lead to deficiencies in vitamin E, calcium, iron and other nutrients. Intestinal problems such as enteritis, colic and impaction of the colon are believed to be more common in captive than in wild elephants.

 

In a number of cases, elephants may be chained in the forest during the evenings. This can provide them with an opportunity to eat but it also brings with it a number of threats if the forest is also home to wild elephant populations. This is a common practice of elephant owners in Vietnam and it has led to a number of elephants being severly injured due them to attacks by wild elephants.

Due to such severe conditions, elephants have died from exhaustion, hunger, dehydration. Between 2013 and 2015, Vietnam reported the death of five elephants due to such neglect.