Elephant rides are a popular tourist activity in countries across Southeast Asia, but activists say the practice is a form of animal cruelty as their bodies are not designed to be ridden.
Elephant health
Elephants' spines cannot support the weight of people and doing so all day can lead to permanent spinal injuries. There are further complications from having a chair (howdah) attached to their backs. This clunky contraption rubs on their backs, causing blisters that can become infected.
Is Bathing with Elephants Unethical? Yes, bathing with elephants is an unethical activity. But it's understandable why the typical visitor to Thailand may not know this. In the wild, elephants love to bathe in rivers, streams, ponds, and muddy wallows.
Let us explain to you the anatomy of an elephant in a nutshell: The backbone of an elephant differs from that of a horse. An elephant is built to lift weight with its trunk – and not to carry people on its back. The vertebrae of the elephant's backbone point upwards just like humans.
Although elephants are large and strong animals, they are not built to carry weight on their backs, which can cause pain and potentially spinal injury.
You might see many articles that say riding elephants does not hurt the elephants. However, this is false. Many of the riding elephants we have rescued have spine problems and terrible wounds on their backs from carrying heavy loads.
Elephants' spines cannot support the weight of people and doing so all day can lead to permanent spinal injuries. There are further complications from having a chair (howdah) attached to their backs. This clunky contraption rubs on their backs, causing blisters that can become infected.
Riding animals or mounts
They mainly include equines such as horses, donkeys, and mules; bovines such as cattle, water buffalo, and yak. In some places, elephants, llamas and camels are also used.
Zebras backs aren't evolved to allow a human to ride a long, let alone to carry cargo or even saddle them. so, even if zebras were the nicest animals on the planet, we'd just cause them pain by riding them. This is not to say that there is no such thing as a tame zebra, just that they are not a domesticated species.
Simple Summary. Mahouts, often known as elephant handlers, or by other terms, such as oozie in Myanmar, work closely with captive Asian elephants in elephant range countries. This work usually involves taking responsibility for just one elephant.
Peachey stated that elephants are almost predisposed to cooperate and work with humans as long as they are treated with respect and sensitivity. Koko worked out when his keepers needed a bit of "elephant help" when they were transferring the females of the group to another zoo.
Fear, domination, and pain cause the elephants to follow the trainers' commands to let people ride, feed, touch, or bathe them. It isn't safe for humans to make direct contact with elephants—getting too close can be deadly.
Elephants are exceptionally smart creatures. They have the largest brain of any land animal, and three times as many neurons as humans. While many of these neurons exist to control the elephant's large and dexterous body, these creatures have demonstrated their impressive mental capabilities time and time again.
Both studies prove that horses experience increased pain and discomfort purely from the act of being ridden. Other factors that influence the scores include the height and weight of the rider. As well as the type of saddle or overall gear used when riding horses. So yes, horses feel pain when ridden.
The huge animals can weigh up to 8,000 pounds, and their trunks, which have around 40,000 muscles in them, can be used to lift weights of 700 pounds. This means they are capable of inflicting serious injury.
Ironically, when we objectively assess what really holds a riding horse back we have to admit something quite awkward, and that is—from a design, strength, and balance point of view—the horse's body is simply not designed to carry a person.
With their long, spindly legs and towering height, giraffes are not exactly built for carrying riders around. Plus, their long necks and awkward gait would make for a pretty bumpy and uncomfortable ride. Assuming you could somehow manage to mount a giraffe, the next challenge would be finding a suitable saddle.
The back of a giraffe is sloped backwards, and that in combination with the considerable height makes it likely and painful to fall of. The height of the neck however prevents to some extend the danger of being thrown off if the giraffe stops abruptly.
They're the only species of horse never to be domesticated, and have a fascinating history.
Sadly, the traditional respect and care that many owners have for their camels isn't universal. Camel rides for tourists are common in many Middle Eastern countries, and some animals are overworked as their owners look to earn as much income as they can.
Does riding harm camels? According to the UK-based Born Free Foundation, there's no evidence that riding camels hurts them.
Exotic animals — lions, tigers, wolves, bears, reptiles, non-human primates — belong in their natural habitats and not in the hands of private individuals as “pets.” By their very nature, these animals are wild and potentially dangerous and, as such, do not adjust well to a captive environment.
For example, elephants use their tails to communicate with each other; much like a dog, a swishing or wagging tail can signify happiness or excitement.
Elephants Don't Forget, But They Can Forgive.
As the saying goes, “an elephant never forgets,” whether it's cruelty or compassion. According to Newsweek, elephants trampled a man who killed “a one-year old calf that belonged to the herd.” This is just the latest in a string of stories involving elephants exacting revenge on cruel humans.