eleblog

“A mahout casts a net from his elephant in Thailand’s Ayutthaya province, about 80 km (50 miles) north of Bangkok” - Yahoo! News Photos

“Thai vets on Thursday ruled out surgery for Sampran, a 6-year-old elephant whose forefoot has swollen to a monstrous size after being injured in a hunter’s trap two years ago. “We can’t operate on the foot because there would be too much blood loss,” said Thai veterinarian Sittidej Mahasawangkul after taking an X-Ray of Sampran’s damaged foot at Lampang National Elephant Institute hospital, 500 kilometres north of Bangkok.” - The Earth Times

“Elephants are not supposed to saunter down the city’s streets as they do almost every night. For at least two decades the giant grey beasts have plodded through this giant grey city, stopping off at red-light districts and tourist areas where their handlers peddle elephant snacks of sugar cane and bananas to passers-by.” - brisbanetimes.com.au

“Elephants are not supposed to saunter down the city’s streets as they do almost every night. For at least two decades the giant gray beasts have plodded through this giant gray city, stopping off at red-light districts and tourist areas where their handlers peddle elephant snacks of sugar cane and bananas to passers-by.” - New York Times

“Despite government efforts, mahouts continue to illegally bring elephants into the Thai capital Bangkok.” - IAR Global News

The coming King’s Cup Elephant Polo Tournament, organised by Anantara Resorts, expected to take place from the 31st of March to the 6th of April, 2008, will officially launch on the grounds of the ‘1st Infantry Regiment King’s Own Bodyguard’, in Vipavadi Rangsit, Bangkok. - e-Travel Blackboard

“Rahul Khanna, on learning from PETA of the elephant who was badly injured by the truck in Chembur on 20th morning, immediately took time out from his busy shooting schedule in Bangkok to write an impassioned plea to the Chief Minister of Maharashtra asking him to stop the entry of elephants into the city of Mumbai.” - indafm

“A senior Thai veterinarian said every elephant in the country should be implanted with a microchip to help protect the troubled pachyderm population.” - IOL

“Ole, a two-year-old Thai elephant, stands side-on to traffic in the middle of a four-lane street in central Bangkok, trunk swinging erratically as buses, taxis and motorbikes whiz past on either flank. For eight hours each night he walks through choking fumes, stopping only when a customer, Thai or tourist, buys a 20 baht (60 cent) bag of sugarcane to feed him and snap a photo. For the next few months, this will be his life.” - smh.com.au

“On Monday, two women, one with a walking stick, rested their arms against the front of the convoy of trucks ready to carry the elephants from their quarantine station two hours west of Bangkok, to the waiting cargo plane at Bangkok airport.” - theage.com.au

“Plans to transfer eight Asian elephants to Australian zoos got another setback on Tuesday after activists kept trucks from hauling the animals to Bangkok’s airport, saying they would suffer abroad. The elephants, after being in cages on trucks for more than 20 hours, were being taken back on Tuesday afternoon to their quarters at a quarantine station, their home for over a year.” - The Hindu

“As cars whizz past Victory Monument, five-year-old Lum Yai performs tricks under a grimy flyover. She spins a multicolored hula-hoop on her front leg, then squirts water at sopping Songkran revellers with her trunk. For this she will get plenty of laughs and 40 baht. Streetside diners normally only pay 20 baht for the privilege of feeding her a small bag of sugarcane.” - IHT ThaiDay

“Two hours west of Bangkok, Thailand, on the Kanchanaburi campus of Mahidol University, eight Asian elephants are waiting.” - National Geographic News

“There will be more than 600 elephants, which will make it the country’s largest elephant park.” - Bangkok’s Independent Newspaper

“The owner of the Ayutthaya elephant farm, 45 miles north of Bangkok, is selling about 20 of his 140 pachyderms. Prices start at 2m baht (£27,000) and the animals come with a verbal guarantee of being well bred, well behaved and a source of good luck.” - The Guardian

“But not just anyone can own an elephant, says Laithongrian Meephan, 47, owner of the Ayutthaya Elephant Farm, 70km north of Bangkok, who is selling about 20 of them.” - IOL

“The Convention of Illegal Trading of Endangered Species (Cites) Conference of Parties (CoP) meet in Bangkok, that ended on October 14, has made the MoEF mandarins worry over India’s 26000 plus elephants. ” - The Times of India

“In the heart of Bangkok’s bustling Chinatown, shops filled with tourist trinkets and antiques hide an illegal multi-million dollar ivory trade that environmentalists warn is destroying global elephant populations.” - Terra Daily