Story from last month, but I don't think I saw it on here (not making judgements here, but no matter how tame, I always have been wary of something that weighs four tons):
Tame elephant turns killer in Vietnam highland resort
A tame elephant fatally trampled a tourist guide Sunday in Vietnam’s central highlands.
Nguyen Cao Tri, 22, had just shot a photo for a foreign traveler sitting on the animal in the popular tourist village of Jun in Dak Lak province when he was attacked by the four-ton male elephant.
It picked him up with his trunk, threw him to the ground, and kicked him to death.
Tri was a resident of the nearby tourist town of Da Lat city.
Tame elephants rarely kill people in Vietnam.
Source: Tuoi Tre – Translated by Luu Thi Hong
I think you statically have more chance of dying on vietnams roads than worrying about a tame elephant going rogue.
I think you statically have more chance of dying on vietnams roads than worrying about a tame elephant going rogue.
No doubt, Hasher. Probably more likely to get killed by lightning for that matter. Nevertheless, much as I love Elephants, they can be unpredictable, like any animal; I prefer to watch them from a distance:-)))
Too bad, but tourist should keep their whims of wanting to ride a elephant to just watching them, as I think its sad to see these lovely animals used for a tourist to riding around and snapping them, sad....
Actually, I think common sense would suggest it's much more likely to die when you go out and seek a dangerous situation whether you know it's dangerous or not, vs. getting randomly killed while going about your daily life. Seems like a very silly comparison.... But that being said, elephants have been tamed and worked with for thousands of years. I see nothing wrong with them being used in the tourist trade as long as they are not being abused. It may be the only way these creatures survive the development in these countries.
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<hr>It may be the only way these creatures survive the development in these countries. <hr></blockquote>
And taht's a fact, Jack. Epephants are certainly on the way out here as less and less people are willing to shoulder the financial burden of keeping an Elephant.
#4 "I think its sad to see these lovely animals used for a tourist to riding around and snapping them, sad.... "
My kids and I rode elephants north of Luang Prabang. The blurb given to us was that they were all, (elephants and Mahouts) ex loggers and now unemployed in that industry. Without the tourist industry they would have been killed (the elephants not the Mahouts) as logging - illegal and legal - had been wound back.
Any thoughts Tim
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