elephant handler is grabbed by the scruff of the neck and forced to kneel at an elephant’s feet after repeatedly beating the animal in the head with a sharp hook in Thailand

2022-04-14 - Ayutthaya, Thailand.

The keeper Peerapat, 18, pierced Chan's thick leathery skin with the bullhook and caused the elephant so much pain that his legs collapsed. Chan Chao is now being treated by local vets with deep cuts to his head. Video also shows the moment Peerapat was grabbed by the scruff of the neck by the camp's manager and forced to kneel at the elephant's feet and say sorry. Veterinarian Thongthae Meepan, the manager of the attraction, claimed that the wounds on the elephant’s head would be ‘healed in...

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Elephant protest in Bangkok cancelled

2017-03-11 - AYUTTHAYA, Thailand.

Laithongrien Meepan, owner of the Ayutthaya Elephant Palace, said he and other elephant keepers in other provinces would not rally at Government House on Monday, which is also National Elephant Day. Government authorities earlier asked them not to rally in Bangkok as it would cause traffic chaos, he said on Saturday.

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New calf born at Ayutthaya elephant kraal

2016-12-19 - Ayutthaya, Thailand.

The Wang Chang Ayutthaya Elephant Kraal in tambon Suan Phrik has a new arrival - a male calf born at 4.40am on Monday. Romthongsai Meephan, the owner of the kraal, said 30-year-old Phang Dok Sano gave birth to a calf weighing about 70 kilogrammes. The youngster was healthy and strong, with all the dominant features of a male Thai elephant.

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Mahouts fight against elephant ownership bill. Many say draft will not solve problem at the root; demand removal of minister

2013-10-26 - Ayutthaya, Thailand.

Hundreds of mahouts gathered with their elephants yesterday at Ayutthaya´s elephant corral and called on the government not to approve the draft Wild Animals Preservation and Protection Bill, which would transfer the ownership of domesticated elephants to a state agency supervising wildlife protection.

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Wangchang Ayutthaya corral set to reopen Nov 15

2011-11-15 - Ayutthaya, Thailand.

The Ayutthaya Elephant Palace and Royal Elephant Kraal or Wangchang Ayutthaya corral, a major tourist attraction in the central province of Ayutthaya, will reopen Nov 15 as the severe flooding has eased, according to owner Laithongrien Meepan.

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Thailand flooding strands elephants in Ayutthaya

2011-11-01 - Ayutthaya, Thailand.

A group of elephants is facing a second month cut off by floods in this submerged Thai city, stranded on a small concrete island at an animal shelter just a few yards (meters) wide. The group of 17 includes seven pachyderms under 4 years old who were too small to flee when the rest of their nearly 90-strong herd escaped approaching floodwaters that engulfed this historic city north of Bangkok more than a month ago.

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Elephantstay Thailand: Its a boy!

2011-02-15 - Ayutthaya, Thailand. Ewa Narkiewicz

Galaget decided to drop her bundle so her little boy could be called Valentine! A big strapping boy with long tail and excellent structure, this is Galaget´s third baby and with same father Junboon as Angpow so they are officially related. As usual mother and baby are doing extremely well!

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Kraal elephants milked to feed stray calf

2010-03-22 - Ayutthaya, Thailand.

Milk from three elephants in Ayutthaya is being extracted to feed an injured newborn calf in the southern province of Chumphon. Nopporn Kawkanitharak, of the Chumphon livestock office, travelled to the Elephant Kraal in Ayutthaya yesterday to pick up the milk to be taken back to Chumphon to feed Plai Huay Yai. Plai Huay Yai, aged 15 days old, strayed from the wild herd and fell into the Huay Yai ravine in Phato district of Chumphon recently.

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Ko Phraya Petch: a refuge for ferocious elephants

2009-10-03 - Ayutthaya, Thailand.

Ferocious killer elephants have been capturing headlines--and public wonder--in Thailand’s local news, but the reasons for the mounting numbers of elephants with an attitude–just why they have become ferocious, is not clear. However, in Thailand’s central Phra Nakhon Si Ayutthaya province, there is an ancient sanctuary founded long ago dedicated solely to provide shelter to calm the spirits of disturbed elephants and to provide them a grounding place to live quietly.

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Thai elephants painted to look like pandas after the black and white bears steal their fans

2009-09-04 - Ayutthaya, Thailand.

It is a desperate cry - or rather a very loud trumpet - for attention.
These elephants were painted black and white to look like the pandas who have stolen all their fans. The elephant is Thailand's national symbol, but the country has gone panda-crazy since the birth of a female panda cub to pandas Lin Hui and Xuang Xuang at Chiang Mai zoo in Bangkok.

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In the hands of babes: Thai elephants’ future. A new generation of mahouts – some as young as 7, and as lightweight as 50 pounds – bend the will of the massive beast.

2009-02-26 - Ayutthaya, Thailand. Tibor Krausz

Dok Mak is old enough to be Goh’s great-grandma and her head alone dwarfs the boy. She eats his weight for breakfast and can easily lift a tree trunk many times his size. Right now, though, on the pint-size boy’s command, the matronly pachyderm obediently lifts a leg – with Goh standing on it. Goh grabs Dok Mak’s droopy ear and hoists himself astride her bulky neck. He rides the elephant down a well-trodden dirt path to the nearby river for her afternoon bath.

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Elephants evacuated from flooded

2008-11-05 - Ayutthaya, Thailand. Samrit Jeamjaruanpornkul, Wannapa Phetdee

Severe flooding yesterday forced the evacuation of more than 80 elephants from a sanctuary in Ayutthaya's Suanprik tambon. The pachyderms are being given temporary shelter at Si Suriyothai Park and other nonflooded areas in Suanprik. Meanwhile, the elephant camp's owner, Laitongrian Meepan, who has about 100 of the beasts under his care, is threatening to bring the entire herd to Bangkok and demand that the Royal Irrigation Department compensate him for the damages the floods have done to his fi...

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A national symbol in need. One day of attention each year on Thai Elephant Day is nowhere near enough to protect them from the major threats they face

2008-03-15 - Ayutthaya, Thailand. Jetjaras Na Ranong

After undergoing hard training and working away to entertain tourists all year round, elephants at a shelter in Ayutthaya were given a one-day break on Thursday _ Thai Elephant Day. Besides 69 ''fruit platters'' for the elephants, the shelter operator also allowed the normally hard-working animals to play around in the water splashing each other for as long as they wanted. The elephants looked to be extremely happy with their day off as they relaxed, playing around and eating. However, while the...

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National Elephant Day in Thailand

2008-03-13 - Ayutthaya, Thailand.

Elephants enjoy a "buffet" of fruit and vegetables during Thailand's National Elephant Day in the ancient Thai capital of Ayutthaya, 80 km (50 miles) north of Bangkok, March 13, 2008. Thais honoured the elephant on Wednesday with special fruit and Buddhist ceremonies across the country to pay homage to their national animal.

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Giving elephants good memories

2008-02-28 - Ayutthaya, Thailand. Jocelyn Ford

Tomorrow's going to be a big day in Thailand. Former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra is expected to return to Bangkok from exile. He was ousted in a coup two years ago, amid accusations of corruption. Out in the Thai jungles, a business tycoon is trying to bring back domesticated elephants. For generations they were used to haul timber, but they were left essentially unemployed when Thailand banned logging twenty years ago. Jocelyn Ford reports on how to make elephants relevant in a modern-day...

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Day in pictures

2007-12-21 - Ayutthaya, Thailand.

An elephant entertains children at a school in Ayutthaya province in northern Bangkok

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Old elephant kraal being rebuilt

2007-10-08 - Ayutthaya, Thailand.

The restoration of Ayutthaya's ancient kraal, the elephant-trapping pen, began yesterday. All 980 ageing logs in the fence surrounding the enclosure are due for replacement. The sao talung are the major component of the pen, or paniad klong chang, which wild elephants were driven into for elephant-trapping ceremonies in the Ayutthaya period. All the old timber is to be replaced under the 16-million-baht restoration project, which was launched to mark His Majesty the King's 80th birthday in Decem...

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Thai elephant sanctuary blessed with jumbo baby boom

2007-05-22 - Ayutthaya, Thailand.

So far, it's been a jumbo good year in Thailand. The Royal Elephant Camp has been blessed with nine calves since January and recently threw a huge party to celebrate. The camp, in the ancient city of Ayutthaya 75 km (45 miles) north of Bangkok, is one of the largest conservation centers in Thailand, a country whose elephant population is dwindling. Environmentalists estimate that only 5,000 Asian elephants are left in the wild, making the baby boom at Ayutthaya crucial to ensuring the future of ...

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Ayutthaya Elephant Camp Nursery third baby in three weeks

2007-05-01 - Ayutthaya, Thailand. Michelle Reedy and Ewa Narkiewicz

The Royal Elephant Kraal in Ayutthaya celebrated its third elephant birth in three weeks this morning May 1st 2007. A baby boy born to Kamliphet. Her third baby and the Kraal's 28th baby elephant birth since February 2000.

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Ayutthaya Elephant camp nursery: ANOTHER GIRL!

2007-04-28 - Ayutthaya, Thailand.

Phootson made sure everyone was kept awake while she groaned with labour pains. And no wonder her baby was a big one! The Royal Elephant Kraal is committed to breeding as many babies as possible. As of 28th April 2007 we have had 28 successful births since 2000. With more on the way. In the nursery right now we have 8 mothers and their babies that you can play with and care for.

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Elephant Santas Pass Out Presents To Children. Animals Use Trunks To Give Gifts

2006-12-22 - AYUTTHAYA, Thailand.

Santa Claus got some big helpers in Thailand this week, as pachyderm elves passed out gifts to school children. The elephants, dressed in Santa outfits complete with hats, lumbered through the streets of Ayutthaya, Thailand, and used their trunks to hand out stuffed toys and balloons to the children.

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Floods force jumbos out of submerged home

2006-10-13 - Ayutthaya, Thailand. APINYA WIPATAYOTIN

Continuing floods in Ayutthaya have made life difficult for elephants. The management of the Ayutthaya Elephant Park has had to move over 12 elephants under its care onto a road near Wat Maheyong in Phra Nakhon Si Ayutthaya district as the site has been submerged since early this month. ''We have never faced such a crisis before. Water came very fast and the current was so strong that we had to move the jumbos from the park,'' manager Kannapoj Tipwong said yesterday.

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Princess enjoys 25th elephant birth at royal Kraal in Ayutthaya

2006-09-29 - Ayutthaya, Thailand.

The Royal Kraal celebrated their 25th elephant birth just after midnight on the 29th September 2006 with Princess MC Rangsinoppadol Ukol present to witness the extraordinary event.

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World Cup inspires a soccer match pitting man against elephants in Thailand

2006-06-22 - AYUTTHAYA, Thailand.

It was Man vs. Elephant on a soccer pitch in Thailand on Thursday, as World Cup fever took on a decidedly local flair. Eleven elephants, each one's back painted with different national flags and carrying a rider, faced off against 11 human players for an afternoon designed to convince fans that soccer is about fun and not gambling. Sports gambling is illegal in Thailand but widespread nonetheless.

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24 years on Internet!

ELEPHANT NEWS was created on 2001 in Munich, and relaunched in Phnom Penh in 2020, with almost 8 000 links to news articles about elephants on the Internet. A number of articles now also have a cross reference to the elephant database, either for individuals elephants and/or to an article about the location holding