Thailand

Elephants

Northern Thailand is elephant country. In the past, the animals were trained and worked in the lumber industry and on public works. Now, these elephants and their descendants are retired and given a better life in the elephant sanctuaries of the Chiang Mai region. However, some tours still offer elephant riding. Some parks have been turned into real tourist factories, large operations that serve the many tourists that visit each day. We value the smaller sanctuaries that give the elephants all the room to move around, and that only exposes them to small groups of visitors.

See our full article on the top elephant sanctuaries around Thailand including links for you to learn more about these majestic animals

Other Animal Sanctuaries

Aims

1. Develop a method to successfully rehabilitate white-handed gibbons back into their natural habitat: The GRP has been testing methods of reintroduction for the past 23 years. Every reintroduction is a learning opportunity. Reintroductions remain a relatively new division of conservation movement as well as uncharted terrain for research.

2. End the demand for the illegal use of gibbons as tourists attractions and as pets: Through the education of visitors at our Center for Conservation Education and Fund-Raising, the GRP hopes to create awareness of the plight of the captive gibbon and to the role that tourism plays in the demand for baby gibbons.

3. To repopulate the last remaining rainforest in Phuket-Khao Pra Theaw Non-Hunting Area (Department of National Park, Wildlife and Plant Conservation): Gibbons were poached to extinction in Phuket over 40 years ago. The GRP hopes to repopulate this forest through the rehabilitation for gibbons that were previously being held in captivity.

Animal Organisations

Rescuing homeless dogs from Thailand & from the DCMT in Cambodia.

Our anti dog meat trade shelter is in Buriram ! This is part of a wider mission led by a group of actors from around the world. You can find them at oneworldactorsanimalrescues

Soi Dog Foundation (Soi Dog) was established in 2003 in Phuket, Thailand, to help the street dogs and cats who had no-one else to care for them. Over 50,000 strays roamed the island, with the numbers growing alarmingly due to a lack of sterilisation (spay/neuter) programmes to control the population. Soi Dog was created to provide a humane and sustainable solution to managing the stray population and to address their medical needs. Funding then, as it is now, came entirely from individuals who shared, and continue to share, the vision of our founders.

The major goals of our organisation are:

• To rescue captive wild animals and rehabilitate them as far as is feasible, allowing them to live the rest of their lives in a safe environment, as close to nature as possible and providing them with the best care possible.

• To campaign against all forms of animal abuse and exploitation in Thailand, work towards ending the illegal pet trade and discourage people from keeping all wild animals as pets. WFFT actively seeks to combat the illegal wildlife trade and to rescue animals from poor conditions or exploitation from human entertainment.

• To provide veterinary assistance to any sick or injured animal; wild or domestic.

•To educate and encourage local people (especially children), tourists and the international community to appreciate, understand and protect wildlife and their natural habitats through our education program. One of the most significant aspects of wildlife conservation is the education of local communities and raising awareness among tourists, who often inadvertently create a big demand for the exploitation of wildlife. WFFT wishes to make people understand the consequences of their actions and aims to persuade them to change their habits and attitudes towards life (If the buying stops the killing will too). This is a long and arduous process and requires a holistic approach to education. Tours are given regularly to western tourists at the rescue center with the aim of raising awareness for the plight of the animals in promoting “responsible eco-tourism”.

• To assist in and develop new projects involved in the protection, rehabilitation, humane captive environments, and welfare of all wild animals.

• To rehabilitate captive wild animals and release them back into the wild, repopulating forest areas in which they are already endangered or extinct.