According to Apinya Wipatayotin, some establishments do not have the necessary animal power tools and have yet to obtain a license.
Elephant tents have a significant impact on the country’s tourism market and are one of the most popular tourist destinations.
More than 200 elephant tents are visited by hundreds of thousands of tourists each year all over the nation. The jumbos have been trained to allowed, amuse and impress their friends.
However, a horrible dying of a Spanish tourists this quarter while visiting an elephant camp in Thailand has posed serious health concerns.
Blanca Ojanguren Garca, 22, allegedly slipped into a lake as she participated in a Phangna province’s Koh Yao Elephant Care Centre’s rhino bathing program. Losing her compromise, she caught the individual’s stem for help before the panic-stricken rhino shoved her. She suffered a brain injury before passing away in a clinic.
” Visitor health is our priority”, said Boonyakrit Pinprasong, deputy chief of the Livestock Department, which is in charge of 245 rhino tents and temples nationwide.
” We have to make certain their routines on health and pet security safeguards are in line with the law.”
He claimed that the elephant station where the incident took place was unregistered and did not register with the office.
He claimed that the ministry issued regulations for elephant facilities in August of last year that might have prevented the drama.
” These are to maintain domesticated animals are living in a good atmosphere, have no disease, are free from any torture and that the facility handles safety procedures for customers”, he said.
” All rhinoceros facilities are required to register and be inspected regularly”, he added.
One of the most important focuses of the laws is getting services to use the appropriate tools to control elephants so that tourists and mahouts can safely travel through them.
Boonyakrit: Safety is a major concern
Mr. Boonyakrit cited the department’s efforts to align all elephant features with the Q standard and get the Q mark, which certifies they comply with the National Bureau of Agricultural Commodity and Food Standards. By this year, he predicted that all licensed camps will keep the Q mark.
Based on the agency’s statistics, there are 5, 359 cultivated elephants in 245 rhino tents nationwide.
Chiang Mai is the main hub for elephant tents, with 90 tents and 871 animals, followed by Phuket with 41 tents and 352 animals, Phangnga with 19 tents and 112 animals, Chon Buri with 18 tents and 315 animals, and Surat Thani with 11 tents and 85 elephants.
Theerapat Trungprakan, founder and CEO of Patara Elephant Farm in Chiang Mai’s Hang Dong city, said the photographer’s death at the station in Phangnga has hit the hospitality business difficult. Many travelers planning to visit Mr Theerapat’s land, which has the Q mark, had pulled out, as they now fear for their health as a result of the media coverage.
He claimed that the incident occurred at a brand-new camp. Staff there may have had a hard time selecting elephants that are amiable with people.
Not all elephants are suitable for display, according to the article. Mahouts must assign specific elephants for specific purposes”, he said.
Elephant camps are set up to meet the demand of tourists. Some people lack the necessary equipment to control their animals, he said, and others lack the necessary skills and experience to do so.
” Our farm supports the proper use of elephant control equipment. The goal is” to ensure safety for all” rather than to harm the animal.
According to a news report, the mahout at Koh Yao Elephant Care Centre had no control over the animal at the time of the incident.
Meanwhile, World Animal Protection Thailand has urged elephant camps to stop using the animals to entertain visitors and observe ethical animal welfare practices.
Additionally, it demanded that tourists be prohibited from engaging in hands-on elephant bathing. Instead, they can observe the animals in their natural settings.
According to the statement, the organization also supports the use of equipment to control elephant behavior in light of ethical standards and proper care, it said.
Meanwhile, the Department of National Parks, Wildlife, and Plant Protection ( DNP ) has reported intensified conflicts between wild elephants and residents in six provinces in the eastern region.
A DNP document on Jan 8 said that 4, 013-4, 422 wild elephants were found in at least 91 forestry areas, including national parks, wildlife sanctuaries, and no-hunting zones last year.
Wild elephant numbers have consistently increased over the past 40 years.