Pets with Profiles

My most recent article for Living+Lifestyle magazine, "Pets with profiles".

Pets with profiles

Companion animals have become a ubiquitous presence in the digital environment, writes Susannah Waters.

The appeal of six-year-old Pomeranian, Boo, is plain to see: the tiny orange dog exudes buckets of cuteness. His endearing looks have attracted a legion of eager fans who hang on his every move via his Facebook profile page. 

Widely lauded as “the world’s cutest dog”, Boo’s popularity has reached feverish proportions. Updates and photos posted from his page attract hundreds of thousands of “likes”, and he has several million followers. And Boo’s star is still rising – he has inspired a photo book and even a soft toy in his likeness. 

Boo is a social media superstar. 

But while Boo may be an extreme example of the reach a pet’s social media profile can achieve, he doesn’t traverse the digital space alone. Companion animals are cropping up online with an ever-increasing frequency. 

Petworking

As social media becomes more heavily integrated into our lives, it’s only logical that the conversation often revolves around family members such as companion animals. But in recent years, the phenomenon of pets with their own profiles has been growing.

A 2011 study revealed that one in 10 British pets have their own social networking profile, while statistics in Australia show that one in 20 have a dedicated Facebook page. 

Reasons people set up profiles for their pets include ease of sharing images and videos with loved ones, having a central forum to diarise and discuss a pet’s daily adventures, to connect with other pet owners, and to share an animal’s unique personality as it is experienced by the pet owner. 

Melbourne resident Kealey Nutt set up profiles for her nine-week-old puppy, Zee, to share updates of her progress with friends. “I didn’t want to bombard everyone with a constant stream of dog-related things, so I decided to make profiles for Zee so that those who were actually interested could follow them”, she says.

While Zee has not attained a cult following to rival Boo’s, her social media presence is prolific. The Boxer/Staffy cross has inspired a blog, Facebook fan page and Twitter account. Nutt’s updates are crafted using Zee’s “voice”. For Nutt, this allows her to explore the world through Zee’s eyes and “wonder what she would say about things”. Nutt clearly enjoys Zee’s digital escapades, and concedes that it’s all in good humour. 

Sydneysider Joanne Ryan also communicates from her dog’s perspective via a Twitter account. Having joked about her Whippet’s funny mannerisms, and what words he may utter if could speak, she thought it would be “a bit of fun” to tweet what Wil might be thinking. 

Ryan aims to connect with other dog owners through Wil’s profile. He is currently followed by other socially-connected Whippets and Ryan’s family and friends. 

Web Dogs

Blogs dedicated to companion animals are also flourishing. Anne Frazer of Adelaide is currently undertaking a 365-day photo project: the ambitious task of documenting her canine companion Yogi every day for a year. Blog entries comprise snapshots of the fluffy Cavachon and a written chronicle of the day’s events. 

Frazer believes the blog gives insight into Yogi’s outlook on life. “I often keep up a running commentary for Yogi at home, so the blog just feels like an extension of that”. The blog’s current audience is fellow dog bloggers and Frazer’s friends, and is “aimed at anyone who can appreciate just how adorable and funny Yogi can be”, Frazer says.  

Many pet-related businesses are also utilising their own pets’ image and “personality” in the digital sphere to become more accessible to clients. 

Donna Cameron-Prosser’s Sunshine Coast business, Just Dogs Photography, has incorporated her two Golden Retrievers into its social media strategy. Stunning images of the dogs pepper the Facebook page and are showcased on the company’s website. 

“People who like dogs generally love theirs like their children, so they can relate to our two gorgeous fur-babies”, she explains. Cameron-Prosser says that client feedback is very interactive, with many sharing stories about their own dogs.   

Alice Needham of Melbourne’s Diamond Dog Food & Bakery can identify. As the company’s ambassador, her Golden Retriever frequently features on the shop’s Facebook page. The client response is overwhelmingly positive. 

“Being a dog-specific business, it seemed obvious to base the social marketing around Monty”, she says. “We get the highest response to posts that include a photo of Monty”.

Connected companions

While masquerading as, and posting about, companion animals on the internet can be viewed as frivolous, this is precisely the point. The tone is often light-hearted, and people generally don’t take themselves too seriously. 

For many, it’s another outlet to express affection for their pets. As social media is an interactive forum, it can also build a sense of community among those with companion animals. 

Ryan is set to continue Wil’s social media ventures, declaring that a Facebook page may be on the cards next. For Frazer, Yogi’s “triumphs and tribulations” are an endless source of inspiration, and at nearly half way with the blog, there’s definitely no risk of her throwing in the towel early. 

Nutt reveals a virtuous long-term goal for Zee’s profiles: to introduce content with “more depth” to raise awareness of animal welfare. Socially connected and socially conscious? What’s not to “like” about that?!

My first article for Discordia - "War (between women): What is it good for?"

I've just started writing for exciting new women's zine, Discordia. This is an alternative women's zine which aims to "disrupt the system (just a little) by providing an alternative thought arena with intelligent, honest commentary, creativity and investigation". 

My first piece for the zine is War (between women): What is it good for?  I was inspired to write this piece after seeing an advertisement by skin care brand Trilogy, which aims to whip up a competitive edge among women in order to sell their rosehip oil product. I look at why this ad is offensive to women, and why this kind of marketing strategy is counterproductive. 

I found out yesterday that Living+Lifestyle magazine, for which I have been writing the monthly pet section for almost a year, will cease publishing in February. While it is a disappointment, it has freed up some time for me and I look forward to using that time to resume writing about animal protection issues, which I am very passionate about.
-------


War (between women): What is it good for?

October 2012

I was perplexed a few months ago when New Zealand skincare brand, Trilogy, resorted to dirty tactics to advertise a new product. I shouldn’t have been surprised – the beauty industry is synonymous with a particular brand of advertising that can provoke a spectrum of negative reactions in women, from discomfort to outrage.

Maybe my surprise stemmed from the subject of the ad: rosehip oil. Basking in the yellow glow of a spotlight, the bottle of rosehip oil stands on a stage below the words “New weapons in the war against other women”, with two crossed swords providing some unambiguous shorthand.

I absolutely love rosehip oil. It’s awesome stuff, honestly. But although it’s a permanent fixture in my bathroom cabinet, I don’t use it to get an “edge” over other women, or to prevail in any complexion competitions (if that was the case, I probably wouldn’t be revealing how wonderful I think it is on any kind of public platform!).

Incidentally, my reliance on rosehip oil took hold after brain surgery for an aneurysm ten years ago. I used it more casually before then as a moisturiser – its natural formulation and lack of animal ingredients initially attracting me – and I’d heard of its efficacy in diminishing scars. So as soon as the bandages came off, I applied it to my surgical scar religiously. It had quite dramatic – and fast – results, and my dedication to daily use was sealed.

Despite my disappointment over Trilogy’s recent ad, I knew that they were merely employing an age-old formula; one that is central to beauty advertising. They were playing into the tired notion that women must be in a perpetual state of competition with each other, an idea played out endlessly on billboards, in magazines, and online.

This type of advertising is certainly not unfamiliar to women. But it seemed quite incongruous, coming from a company which professes to value social responsibility as one of its central tenets, and which makes so-called “eco-friendly”, natural products. I actually expect these kinds of tactics from the larger, ubiquitous cosmetic and skincare brands, who load their products with chemicals, test on animals, and Photoshop their ads with the vigour of an extreme sport. But Trilogy claims to pride itself on ethics.

Social responsibility should undoubtedly extend to the way a company “speaks” to their target market (in this case, adult women). Openly demeaning your target market – pigeon-holing them, characterising them as trivial – is not an effective, or sustainable, marketing strategy. Trilogy learnt this, when a social media storm erupted over its ad and they were compelled to pull it.

The concept of eternal female competition, and the corresponding hyper-focus on looks, presents us with a sinister message which trumpets the aesthetic – and of course, youth – as supreme. The spoils of the “war”, ostensibly available to those purchasing Trilogy’s product, was presumably a youthful, enviable, wrinkle-free complexion.

The message that beauty is, and should be, women’s ultimate aspiration is pervasive and entrenched. In her penetrating 1990 book, The Beauty Myth: How Images of Beauty Are Used Against Women, Naomi Wolf claimed that images of female beauty were used as a political weapon against women’s advancement, and that female competition was intrinsically intertwined. She argued that the “beauty myth” had deep roots in Western society.

So it’s not news that the beauty industry’s reliance on spawning inadequacy among women keeps the wheels of its multi-billion dollar machine well-oiled. Profits hinge on inducing a competitive edge in women.

It’s also not news that this can have an insidious effect on a woman’s consciousness. Looks hyper-awareness and obsession can be an all-encompassing cloak over a woman’s psyche.

Strangely, although I can see through the manipulative profit motive of the beauty industry’s use of synthetic and airbrushed images of women, it can sometimes be hard to rise above it. The images can still serve to demoralise and engender feelings of inferiority within me, and I know many other women feel similarly.

Therefore, it can be overly simplistic to suggest that women should merely “rise above” these images and messages, and embrace “body confidence” (which itself has become a beauty industry buzz term). The only truly liberating path is for an unequivocal rejection of advertising and images which seek to suppress women’s confidence, and which pit us against each other – and against the “beauty ideal” - for the purposes of propping up beauty industry profits.

The fact that the Trilogy ad was toppled by a decisive public backlash is a strong sign that this kind of advertising has more than had its day. It is positive that social media can be harnessed to express objection to unethical advertising, and a company would ignore such an outpouring of public outrage at its own peril.

I am heartened by the fact that this ad prompted such criticism. And I am hopeful that women will continue to defend and support each other against ads and companies that aim to trivialise us.

A second chance

My article for the July issue of Living+Lifestyle, Another's Treasure, explores why animals from shelters make fantastic companions, and addresses some of the myths surrounding these animals. I interviewed several people who found their companion animals at a shelter, plus Tim Vasudeva, CEO of the Animal Welfare League NSW, and Christine Cole, CEO and Shelter Vet at the Sydney Dogs and Cats Home.
---------

Another's Treasure

July 2012

Those looking for a new pet needn’t look further than an animal shelter to find the perfect companion, writes Susannah Waters.

“You can’t get a rescue dog - you don’t know what they’ve got”, Brisbane teacher Danielle Milne was warned numerous times.

Upon deciding to get a canine companion, Milne researched her options thoroughly. But she found herself having to contend with stern warnings from people who insisted getting a pet from a shelter was a gamble.

“Initially, I was definitely steered away from rescue animals”, reveals Milne.

However, she became increasingly drawn to the idea of finding her new pet at a shelter. “Something resonated within my soul that I must get a rescue dog”, she says.

Since adopting a young dog she fell in love with at a rural animal shelter, Milne hasn’t looked back. Five years on, her Pomeranian cross Honey is a pivotal part of her life.

Victims of circumstance

Some people fear that animals in shelters are second-rate, inferior behaviourally and health-wise, and even constitute “damaged goods”. 

Tim Vasudeva, CEO of the Animal Welfare League NSW (AWL), challenges this view.  

“There can be a perception among people that there is something wrong with them. Invariably, that’s not the case”, Vasudeva says. “The vast majority are just happy animals. They just didn’t have the right home the first time around, through no fault of their own”.

Animal shelters across Australia take in hundreds of thousands of surrendered and abandoned pets each year. Many arrive in shelters due to a change in their owner’s circumstances, including rental housing issues, the loss of a job, relationship breakdowns, or even death of the owner. Vasudeva also says that some people buy a puppy without first considering the work required to keep them happy and healthy.

There are several benefits to adopting a pet from an animal shelter.

“You take a lot of the guesswork out of it”, Vasudeva explains. “With a mature animal six months of age plus, you’re dealing with a known temperament and personality, with established likes and dislikes”.

Dr Christine Cole, Shelter Veterinarian and CEO of the Sydney Dogs and Cats Home (SDCH), agrees.

“It is an advantage because you know what you are getting behaviourally”. She adds that purchasing a purebred animal from a pet shop does not necessarily guarantee a healthy pet.

“If you adopt from a reputable shelter, the animals will have been health checked by a vet and temperament assessed”, Dr Cole says. “This is not the case from a pet shop”.

She points out that many purebred dogs available from pet shops come via “puppy farms”.

These are intensive breeding facilities where dogs are housed in overcrowded conditions, with little regard for their psychological and social wellbeing. They also often lack adequate veterinary care. Unsurprisingly, puppy farms have recently come under intense scrutiny.  

A honey to love  

Milne speaks of Honey’s protective behaviour towards her infant son Henry with pride. She also loves that Honey is unique: one part Pomeranian, one part “her little secret”, she stands out in a crowd.

Sydneysider Adrian Hayward also has a “honey” of his own. He found his tortoiseshell domestic shorthair Honey Bunny at the Cat Protection Society NSW eight years ago.

Honey Bunny has become a close companion for Hayward. He refers to the 11-year-old feline as his “little mate”, and reveals a host of other affectionate nicknames he has bestowed on her. 

The motivation to adopt from an animal shelter stemmed from Hayward’s wish to give a cat “another chance”.

“The thought of all those animals without a home is sad”, he says. “I don’t like the idea that animals get destroyed as they can’t find a new home, because for some reason the original owner can no longer have them”.

Hayward was pleased that Honey Bunny was well-mannered and house-trained.

Jemmah Latham can also attest to the quality of animals from shelters. The veterinary receptionist has been a regular foster carer of kittens from the AWL and SDCH for two years.

“I love watching them grow and develop, and then go on to become beautiful pets”, says Latham, whose dog Zac also loves fussing over the kittens. “All the kittens I’ve fostered have been happy, healthy pets and very well adjusted in their new homes”.  

Latham’s first dog came from a shelter, and she has vowed that all future pets will too. “In my experience, you can’t get a better pet than a rescued pet”, Latham declares.

Compatible companions

For those concerned that finding a pet to suit their lifestyle may be a challenge, Vasudeva lays fears to rest. 

“We match pets up well. We are able to find a pet to fit in with people’s circumstances”, he claims. “If you’re looking for a dog that’s good with young children, we can introduce you to those dogs”.

Searching for a pet need not be exhausting, as people can simply go online and see for themselves the range of animals awaiting re-homing. AWL, SDCH and PetRescue all have good websites with profiles for animals currently available for adoption.  

For Milne, there is no doubt that Honey was a match made in heaven. “I think she knows that I rescued her. She walks the Earth with a sense of appreciation; a silent thank you for having given her a second chance”.

Support grows to end bear bile farming

My latest article for The Scavenger, Support grows to end bear bile farming, was published online last month. I look at the horrendous practice of bear bile farming, the brilliant work Animals Asia Foundation (AAF) are doing to close down the industry, and also detail the rising tide of support for a ban in China.

This is an issue very close to my heart - I spent three months as a volunteer at the AAF Moon Bear Rescue Centre in Chengdu, China, in 2006. It was a life-changing experience.

I was lucky to have some fantastic interviewees for the article: Jill Robinson (CEO and Founder of AAF), Anne Lloyd-Jones (Australian Director - AAF), and Martin Guinness (Director of new film Cages of Shame).

---------------

Support grows to end bear bile farming

Prominent Chinese personalities, students, academics, members of the public and the media are joining the growing chorus of voices speaking out against bear bile farming – an incredibly cruel practice where bears are kept in tiny metal cages for years on end, their bodies cut open to drain their bile for use as a health remedy. Animals Asia Foundation is at the forefront of rescuing these bears, who have physical and mental scars, and placing them in sanctuaries where they can begin to enjoy life after countless years of confinement and agonising pain. Susannah Waters reports.

24 May 2012

I once witnessed a moon bear walk on grass for what was believed to be her first time. She was recovering at the Animals Asia Moon Bear Rescue Centre in China after countless years on a bear bile farm.

The wide outdoor space La Jana was introduced to initially elicited fear from this enormous individual, who had spent the majority of her life in a tiny metal cage. It was astonishing to observe a huge bear become nervous at the sensation of grass underfoot. Luckily, unease soon turned to curiosity and she began to relish her time in the sun.

During my time as a volunteer at the rescue centre, what I found most striking about La Jana was her gentle attitude toward humans: she radiated peace. Her behaviour indicated that she didn’t harbour any ill will towards the people who now worked around her, despite a history of human indifference to her suffering.

Animals Asia Foundation (AAF) is the organisation at the epicentre of the fight to end bear bile farming. The progress AAF has achieved to date is impressive: it has closed down 43 Chinese farms, and has overseen the conversion of 20 mainland China provinces to bear farm-free status. The organisation has rescued 381 bears from these factories of misery in China and Vietnam.

Life in the shadows


For 19 years, AAF Founder and CEO Jill Robinson has been unwavering in her commitment to abolish bear farming. Robinson, who refers to the practice as “barbaric mutilation of an endangered species”, says that images from her first glimpse into a bear farm in 1993 still haunt her.

“But today, nearly two decades later, I see bears suffering in exactly the same way on these disgusting farms in China and Vietnam”, she tells The Scavenger.

Bear bile’s use in Traditional Chinese Medicine gave rise to facilities which operate with the sole aim of extracting the substance from live bears. Extraction techniques cover a spectrum of brutality. The deplorable free-drip method – comprising a gaping hole cut into a bear’s abdomen to facilitate the flow of bile – is the only legally-sanctioned method in China, but crude catheters inserted into gall bladders or the torturous metal jacket are still often used.

Farmed bears are often confined in cages so small they can barely move.

The suffering of farmed bears is all-encompassing. The bile extraction process is not only agonising, but also leaves bears vulnerable to disease and premature death. Mental trauma and consequent stereotypical behaviours are rife among farmed bears, who are denied any semblance of a normal life.

Official figures suggest that 7,000 bears are presently incarcerated in bear farms across China. However Anne Lloyd-Jones, Australian Director of AAF, suspects the number is higher. “There could be more than 14,000 bears on farms in China, but no one really knows for sure. The figure could actually be closer to 20,000”, she says.

Nevertheless, AAF remains confident that bear farming’s days are numbered. Robinson believes that it will ultimately be reflected upon with “utter shame that our species could have been responsible for such physical and psychological torture of another sentient, intelligent mammal”.

An inspiring journey

A new film Cages of Shame underscores the determination of AAF to eradicate bear bile farming and cease the trade in its associated products.

Martin Guinness’s award-winning film follows a team of AAF staff traversing thousands of kilometres to free 10 bears from years of bondage on a Shandong farm. The trip was fraught with a series of challenges, including frequent traffic gridlock and the ever-present anxiety over the bears’ health.The goal was to transport the bears safely to AAF’s Moon Bear Rescue Centre in Chengdu, where staff would work to repair their damaged bodies and fragile mental health. Almost 300 bears have passed through the sanctuary’s gates since 2000.

Guinness, who first saw a flyer about the plight of the moon bears six years ago, hopes to increase public awareness of bear farming.

“It touched me so much, I knew I had to try and do something”, Guinness says. “Obviously, being a filmmaker, I thought of making a documentary film to spread the word”.

He joined the AAF to document their trip to liberate the group of bears. “Naturally, my hope was to initially spread the word to let people know”, Guinness says. “Of course, the end intention is to free all the bears being held in cages.”

Lloyd-Jones believes that Cages of Shame is an important film as it not only exposes the “horrors” of bear farming, but also demonstrates the rising tide of support for a ban in China.

“It shows how many wonderful Chinese people went out of their way to help us rescue those 10 bears. While there is a lot of animal cruelty in China – as there is in Australia and elsewhere – there is also a large number of people who deeply care about animals and want bear farming to end as much as we do”, she says.

Guinness reveals the bear rescue had a profound impact on him. “I was also touched by the emotions of the vets and veterinary nurses, who are used to seeing animals in pain. But, in some cases, they were in tears seeing the state of the caged bears.”

The compassion and fortitude displayed by the staff is perhaps one of the most powerful features of the film.

Explosion of support

Bear bile has traditionally been used as an antidote to inflammation and heat-related afflictions in humans, including high temperatures and liver disease.

But its use as a health remedy has been scrutinised by medical practitioners in recent years. Evidence is mounting that this substance, often derived from very ill bears, presents a grave risk to human health.

Bears languishing on farms often succumb to an array of health conditions such as regular infections, multiple diseases and even cancer. In addition, the unsanitary method of the bile’s collection and containment, and the administering of drugs such as antibiotics to bears, make for a toxic – and sometimes deadly – concoction.

Lloyd-Jones maintains that science is on their side. “Not only is bear farming cruel, but we can prove that the bile extracted is tainted and the bears coming from farms are sick”, she says. She claims that the alternatives to bear bile are cheaper and cruelty-free, and are very effective in treating the conditions bear bile is prescribed for.

Over 50 herbal substitutes for bear bile are listed in the Chinese pharmacopeia, and numerous synthetic alternatives exist.

Robinson reveals that many Traditional Chinese Medicine doctors are among those now rejecting bear bile. AAF has had great success in encouraging pharmacy shop owners to relinquish their bear bile supplies and pledge to become bear bile-free.

Support is pouring in from multiple corners. Prominent Chinese personalities, students, academics, members of the public and the media are joining the growing chorus of voices speaking out against bear farming.

Robinson says that this “new movement of people rising up” against the “hideous” practice of bear farming is what sustains her faith that it will one day be consigned to history.

Day to day, she is inspired by seeing the “beautiful, forgiving rescued bears” at the rescue centre, “enjoying their freedom with the choice of swimming in pools, playing with friends in the grass, or sleeping under the sun”.

The legacy of those lost

Sadly, La Jana’s time in the sun was fleeting. Although finally free of the cage and the catheter, the bear bile industry had not yet softened its grip on her.

Cancer began to ravage her liver, and started to consume this sweet bear whose own body never truly belonged to her.

She did get to experience some beautiful moments of freedom before her passing, like those lazy afternoons on the grass. I also recall times when several of us spoiled her with an endless feast of fruit in the knowledge she didn’t have much time left on this earth.

Although underweight and growing weaker by the day, her sparkling soul continued to shine through.

Liver cancer is frighteningly prevalent in farmed bears. Many of the lucky bears who are cared for in the tranquil surrounds of the rescue centre carry a heavy burden of illness from their oppressive former lives.Although the battle is not yet won, fortunately for the other bears currently suffering in silence on farms, AAF's indomitable spirit is absolutely unyielding.

“No matter how long it takes, we have to stop bear farming and we know we will. It’s just a matter of time”, insists Lloyd-Jones.

Robinson’s optimism is also unshakable. “We are finally turning the corner and people are no longer willing to accept this systematic torture and exploitation of the bears”, she says.

She is confident that her team’s work and tenacity will “relegate bear farming to the history books of shame and see as many bears as possible free from their torture traps, enjoying their first glimpse of spring”.

I don’t doubt it for a second.



Jill Robinson, Founder and CEO of Animals Asia Foundation, will be speaking at a series of events in Australia and New Zealand in early June. For event information, see: www.animalsasia.org/roadshow

Animals Asia has been holding screenings of Cages of Shame in Australia, the US and the UK. For more information on the film, visit: http://www.cagesofshame.com/

Susannah Waters is associate editor at The Scavenger. Susannah volunteered at the Animals Asia Moon Bear Rescue Centre for several months in 2006.

Photos: Jill Robinson during the Shandong bear rescue in April 2010 (photo courtesy of AAF); ex-farmed bears relaxing and playing at the Moon Bear Rescue Centre (both photos: writer’s own).

The perils of speaking about Thai elephant exploitation

My latest piece, The perils of speaking about Thai elephant exploitation, was inspired by the recent raids of authorities on two leading wildlife sanctuaries in Thailand.

The Thai tourism industry generates massive profits from selling elephant-related activities to tourists. The tourism industry conceals the dark reality behind these activities: the brutal abuse that elephants are subjected to in order to "prepare" them for a life of providing elephant rides, painting pictures for tourists, playing football, etc.

Public ignorance is part of the tourism industry's agenda, therefore those who speak up against the abuse of elephants have faced intimidation and threats. There is strong indication that the recent wildlife sanctuary raids were an effort by Thai officials to cover up their own involvement in the illegal trading of elephants within the country, by hushing those speaking out.

Jerry Nelson who runs blog "Asian Elephant Stories" reposted my article on his blog.

-----------

The perils of speaking about Thai elephant exploitation

13 March 2012

Recent raids on two wildlife charities in Thailand have caused outrage in wildlife protection circles. These incidents have been interpreted as an attempt to intimidate and silence wildlife conservationists speaking out about illegal elephant trading within the country. Suspicions as to the complicity of Thai authorities in the trade of elephants are well-founded, and are likely to be behind efforts to muzzle campaigners, Susannah Waters reports.

Elephant riding has long been championed by tourist operators within Thailand. The Tourism Authority of Thailand promotes it with a dizzying excitement: it claims elephant riding is an “integral part of all tourists’ visits”, that “there are few experiences in Thailand more iconic”, and that “riding atop one of these intelligent yet gigantic creatures is often the highlight of one’s trip to Thailand”.

The activity is presented as an exhilarating, not-to-be-missed experience of a lifetime.

Not surprisingly, absent from the over-hyped descriptions of promised tourist thrills is the reality of abuse, over-work and exploitation of tourist elephants. Missing from the glossy tour leaflets is mention of the phajaan training ceremony, the brutal sustained abuse young elephants are forced to endure in preparation for a lifetime of carrying tourists, performing in animal shows, and even painting pictures for tourist amusement.

A blow-by-blow of the phajaan doesn’t make for light reading. The confining and beating with metal hooks and sharp implements, the deprivation of sleep and food, and the ultimate breaking of the spirit to transform Thailand’s “intelligent yet gigantic” creatures into mere shells of submission, consequently renders them more malleable to an industry with a lot to gain.

And also a lot to hide. The cruel training ritual inflicted on all domestic and tourist elephants is the industry’s dirty little secret.

As is the illegal poaching and trading of elephants within the country, alleged to have links to Thai government officials and prominent businessmen.

Complicity and cover-ups  

Recent weeks have seen two leading Thai wildlife charities subjected to raids by Department of National Parks (DNP) officials. In February, the Wildlife Friends Foundation Thailand (WFFT) faced several days of raids resulting in the violent removal of 103 animals from their sanctuary in Phetchaburi. At the time of writing, only three animals had been returned.

Founder of WFFT, Edwin Wiek, had penned a letter to a Thai newspaper only days earlier, in which he outlined the issue of baby elephants being poached from the wild to supply Thai elephant camps. He estimated that over half of all young elephants in tourist camps were “wild-caught”.

Wiek suggested a cover-up had taken place over the recent deaths of six elephants within two national parks. Despite claims by a government official they were likely slaughtered for “bush-meat”, Wiek believed a more realistic scenario was they’d been killed to obtain their babies for tourist elephant camps.

In addition to detailing the huge financial incentives driving the demand for wild-caught baby elephants, Wiek alleged that “influential people” buttressed elephant trafficking and that bribing of officials was standard. 

There is strong indication that the ensuing harassment of WFFT’s sanctuary just days later was no coincidence, and was directly linked to Wiek’s explosive claims rather than DNP’s stated need to urgently sight legal documentation for the animals under WFFT’s care. 

In strikingly similar circumstances, shortly after Elephant Nature Park (ENP) founder Sangduen ‘Lek’ Chailert was interviewed on Thai TV about the illegal elephant trade, the DNP converged on her park’s Chiang Mai grounds.

The elephant rescue and conservation group was raided three times by the DNP in February, ostensibly to seize illegally kept wild elephants. Upon finding none during the first two raids, officials conceded that there were no wild elephants housed among the park’s herd of rescued elephants.

Yet, DNP officials returned to the park several days after Chailert joined Wiek and elephant conservationist Antoinette van de Water for a Bangkok press conference, where they discussed the illegal elephant trade.   

Staff and volunteers staged a protest as officials again entered the park, but no confiscations or arrests were carried out – despite a tip-off that they would. However, DNP have pledged to return, purportedly to chase up documentation for several elephants at the park.

In a video discussing the raids, Chailert questioned why the 16 elephant camps in the region were not also being scrutinised.  

Punishing the protectors

The harassment of wildlife campaigners in Thailand is not without precedent.

Antoinette van de Water, founder of elephant conservation group Bring the Elephant Home (BTEH), has worked to protect elephants for a decade in Thailand. Fresh from the Bangkok press conference and the protests at the Elephant Nature Park (a group she has worked closely with for years), she tells The Scavenger that she is proud of the work BTEH has achieved for the benefit of elephants.

But she admits her efforts have sometimes come at a personal cost. 

Two years ago, a media storm erupted in reaction to revelations about the forced breeding of elephants in van de Water’s book, The Great Elephant Escape. She was accused of lying and fabricating the information, and of insulting Thailand. 

In statements to the media, so-called elephant “experts” tried to discredit van de Water, denied that forced breeding happens, and declared that she should be deported from Thailand.

“I received some serious warnings. I don’t get scared easily, but this made me feel at least a bit uncomfortable in Thailand”, reveals van de Water. “Even organisations I used to work together with didn’t speak out to defend me. It’s all about the political position, and this is more important than animal welfare, I learned”.

During her 10 years in Thailand, van de Water has witnessed elephant abuse first-hand, including the cruel training of baby elephants. From experience, she knew how problematic it was to raise these issues publicly and that she risked getting “in a lot of trouble”.

Her frustration grew as it became clear it would be difficult to fight “the corrupted powerful gang of people” at the heart of the elephant trade.

Van de Water has found this aspect of working in Thailand so frustrating that she now feels better placed to advocate for elephants away from Thailand, and has made the difficult decision to leave.

“I am not giving up; I will stay active for animals, including Thai elephants. But I feel that I can do more, and be much more appreciated, in another part of the world”, says van de Water.

She believes that the raids at ENP and WFFT happened because Chailert and Wiek have been “very outspoken” in the Thai media about the recent elephant killings.

“I believe they [the DNP] did this to intimidate these NGOs and to save face”, claims van de Water.

Abused by the system

The relentless marketing of elephant activities to tourists falsely depicts these experiences as harmless to elephants, and often places them in a “get back to nature” context.

Suffice to say that there is nothing natural about the enforced enslavement of elephants for tourist entertainment.

Elephant riding and related activities serve to entrap elephants in a cycle of abuse while simultaneously depleting their numbers in the wild. Thus, the paying tourist becomes an accessory to elephant exploitation.

Wiek alluded to this in his controversial letter, stating that “people who ignore what is occurring effectively support the killing and torture of wild-born elephants”.

But with strong and sustained attempts to hush critics such as Wiek, unfortunately many tourists are none the wiser about elephant abuse. The industry which reaps immense profits from appropriating elephants has a vested interest in maintaining the ignorance of tourists.

Worryingly, Thai officials are allegedly involved in facilitating the traffic and poaching of elephants.

Van de Water says that she has encountered ample evidence of this.

Last year, her group was informed of some seriously injured elephants in Surin province. Upon arrival they discovered a severely injured young adult elephant with a tusk missing and deep cuts across her entire body. They were initially told by a mahout that he’d rescued her, but the truth was uncovered later that night: the group of mahouts had been shooting wild adult elephants in order to steal babies from the herd.

The injured elephant was captured and immediately forced into torturous phajaan training. The plan was to then sell her to the tourism industry.

Van de Water’s group asked how the mahouts could sell an elephant without any documentation. All captive-born elephants over the age of 8 are required to be registered.

“They just laughed about this question: easy! One way is to use the papers of a domesticated elephant that died already. But even easier: powerful people will just make the papers”, recounts van de Water.

Because elephants under 8 years of age don’t require paperwork, wild-caught babies are often simply passed off as the offspring of domestic elephants.

Van de Water claims that at the annual Surin Elephant Round-up, organised by the Surin government, there are scores of baby elephants. She detests the event - which features choreographed elephant shows and “performances” including football games – but attends to maintain a watchful eye. Once she collaborated with Animal Planet on the filming of a behind-the-scenes documentary there.

Physical signs of the abuse of baby elephants are clearly visible at the festival, van de Water says. “When you have a closer look at the babies, you will see incredible abuse. Head completely covered with wounds, of a baby not even a year old”.

Her conversations with mahouts at the event have been illuminating. Many admitted that they bought wild-caught young elephants, and disclosed that “very powerful and influential” people assisted with arrangements.

Van de Water asserts that the recent national park elephant deaths, which prompted Wiek’s letter to the media, did have Department of National Parks involvement. This is known within Thailand, she says, and they most certainly were motivated by the prospect of big money.

“Unless the forestry department makes a big change to get rid of corruption and start to really enforce laws, I’m worried a lot about wild elephants…. Even though many elephants die, they will still have elephants to expose: playing football, painting pictures, carrying tourists.  A sad image of the future of Thai elephants, no? But this is the direction Thailand is taking”, van de Water laments.

The cry of elephants in the ‘land of smiles’

The weight of evidence suggests that the recent raids on WFFT and ENP were a form of punitive action, aiming to silence and constrain wildlife conservationists. The message is loud and clear: speak out and suffer the consequences.

But elephants don’t have the luxury of time on their side. Their situation grows ever more precarious by the year. With as little as 1500  wild elephants remaining in Thailand, the urgency for conservationists to inform the public is stronger than ever.

Elephants’ continued survival depends on these dedicated campaigners to advocate for their rights in Thailand. A successful suppression of wildlife campaigners would condemn Thai elephants to an even more perilous existence.

But the world is watching, and in recent weeks WFFT and ENP have been inundated with messages of support. Protests are being organised at Thai embassies around the world to demand the return of confiscated animals to WFFT’s sanctuary.

Although it is an uphill battle, the tenacity and hard work of many to end the illegal trade and exploitation of elephants is unlikely to waver.

“No matter how much they will try to intimidate us, the truth will come out. We have too many supporters to let this happen again”, insists van de Water.  

See the Elephant Nature Park and Wildlife Friends Foundation Thailand websites for the latest developments.  

Related reading:

Wildlife tourism in Thailand: Cruel and exploitative?

Photos: Abused elephant in Kanchanaburi province, group of elephants at Elephant Nature Park; abused elephant in Surin; all courtesy of Bring the Elephant Home.