Finishing up my work in Thailand

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Tim Gorski of Rattle the Cage Productions spent all day yesterday at the Park, from sun up to sun down, documenting the relationship between Chang Yim and Karl, his mahout. I was thrilled when Tim decided to wave his fee…he is an authentic animal welfare advocate. Check out his site at www.rattlethecage.org.

The footage Tim took will provide the visuals necessary for a video comparison of free-contact dominance and free-contact non-dominance elephant training. This footage will be the first of many hours collected in support of positive reinforcement training for elephants.

Oh boy, was it ever hard leaving ENP today. It was impossible to not get attached to the elephants during my stay because they absorbed me right into their family. I love and respect each one for their good humor, resilience and individuality. They are permanently embedded in my heart.

I am on my way back to Boon Lott’s Sanctuary for one more week of foot care and positive reinforcement target training with Mee Chok. I can’t wait to see how he responds!

Comments

3 responses to “Finishing up my work in Thailand”

  1. Ele-aunt Avatar
    Ele-aunt

    Hi Carol,
    You’re doing a great job! Thanks for bringing us closer to the eles, their stories, homes, and humans. You’re attached to them, and I’m attached to reading about them!
    Thanks to Tim Gorski too for documenting the work. Blessings to both of you~

    So glad, too, to hear about Mee Chok’s improvement. One ele at a time, until every one is loved, respected, and safe from human harm….

  2. sherryheim Avatar
    sherryheim

    There is some very powerful video on that site, thank you, Carol, for giving us the link. I can only imagine how difficult it would be for you to leave the elephants at ENP. You have spent your life bonding with elephants and I would suspect it is second nature for you. It would do both you and the elephants a huge disservice not to allow those natural bonding instincts to flow freely between you, but parting must really pull hard upon the heartstrings. Enjoy your time back at BLES and please continue to share your exciting journey with us.

  3. Lesley Avatar
    Lesley

    I can only imagine how hard it is to part from these elephants. I’m pretty sure you must be embedded in all of the elephant hearts you touch, Carol.

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