Volunteering at Elephant Nature Park, Thailand

July 16, 2017

Volunteering at Elephant Nature Park, Thailand

What could be better than volunteering to care for elephants for a week in the jungle of Northern Thailand? We worked with Elephant Nature Park which is one of the more well known sanctuaries for rescued elephants, dogs, cats and any other animal in need. The hour long drive into the rainforest covered mountains was breath-taking, in fact waking up every day in this paradise reminiscent of Jurassic Park, with less ferocious inhabitants, was a dream come true. We had the best week of our lives and it was all down to the wonderful ethics of the park and our lovely volunteering family.

Now for the difficult part, we thought long and hard about whether we should volunteer with elephants in Thailand as there are unfortunately many places which are profiting from these beautiful creatures. Elephants are still being used in the tourist industry for riding, performing tricks and begging in cities, as well as illegally in the logging trade. These are obvious things to avoid contributing to but there are also fake "sanctuaries" or "retirement parks" that mistreat their elephants. They could have been taken from the wild which involves them being tortured until they submit, the park could use nails or hooks to control them or they could even be starved, so it is important to choose wisely if you visit.

Elephant Nature Park, amongst others I'll list below, is one of the few places who are entirely dedicated to the well being of elephants. They have all been rescued from the logging or tourist trade with many suffering catastrophic injuries resulting in permanently broken limbs, blindness from mistreatment and significant mental trauma. These wonderful animals are now living out their lives in the peace of the park or being rehabilitated in a quiet part of the jungle. The founder is a local Thai lady who has dedicated her life to protecting elephants, as well as working to shape Thailand's relationship with these beautiful creatures through government and more locally. We had carefully managed interaction with the elephants who are free to go where they please and do whatever they wish; the focus was on enjoying elephants behaving naturally. Luckily the industry is beginning to change in Thailand as more tourists make responsible choices, but it all starts with sharing our knowledge.

One of the most memorable parts of the experience was going to sleep in our wooden hut listening to the sounds of elephants snoring and calling to each other. Our accommodation was basic but perfectly rustic, and in all honesty none of us really minded a cold shower as we got to stay in paradise. The food was a dream come true with the biggest vegan buffet three times a day complete with a dog or cat friend to sit at your feet; even if you're a meat lover you won't miss it here! There is a strong message about being compassionate to all living beings and thinking about the choices we make which was very poignant.

Volunteering with elephants is hard work! We were up at 6am to get ready for the day ahead which could involve hours of scooping poop, unloading endless amount of bananas/melons/pumpkins or even planting grass. It was difficult but rewarding work and there were always elephants roaming around, some curious as to what you were up to and others hoping for a pineapple treat, which made this so worthwhile. We also had the chance to join the elephants in the river for a refreshing bath, which ended in a water fight every single time and I'm sure we were more wet than the elephants. At one point a double rainbow appeared with both ends finishing in the park, confirming we were most definitely in paradise.

There are around 30 elephants in the park and 30 more being rehabilitated in a remote part of the jungle, but there are also over 450 dogs as well as cats, buffalo, horses, goats and sheep. In our free time we could go and hang out in cat kingdom to cuddle these cute furry friends (who are looking for a home) or even go and help out in the dog rescue centre who always needed a hand. I think we must have gone to walk and cuddle the pups at least twice a day which was a dream come true. They are some of the sweetest dogs I've ever met and are all just waiting to be adopted, a process which is actually a lot easier than you would think. The sanctuary took in a lot of the dogs from the 2011 floods that hit Thailand, but they have also rescued many from puppy mills. I've never met such passionate hard-working people, Nat Ti you're a dream and the park is so lucky to have you! These dogs all desperately need homes so if you want rescue a pup let us know and we could recommend at least 100 dogs that stole our hearts.

Another important part of our week was learning about Thai culture from the local villagers, park employees and school children. It was great to watch traditional ceremonies, learn the Thai language and have a talk on conservation, but one of our highlights was visiting the local school. We got to join in with all the games and dances with our failed attempts definitely leading to a lot of giggling. The Mahouts look after the elephants, each of them bond with one in particular and make sure they don't get into trouble around the park or run out of tasty fruit to eat. We got to see the Mahout Band perform with instruments made from bamboo and old barrels and it was fantastic; I've never seen a band look so happy. Thank you again to all the wonderful people that we met during the week, it was so much fun to meet like minded individuals and we honestly had the time of our lives.

The resounding message from the park was not to donate money or book another week at the sanctuary, it was a passionate plea to educate and share the plight of elephants all over Asia and work together to make a change. If you ever have the opportunity to visit this beautiful park, you won't be able to jump on an elephants back to get a perfect selfie, but you will learn about compassion and that sometimes humans need to take a step back to truly respect and appreciate the beauty of this world.