The Times' editorial Monday on the L.A. City Council's proposed ban on elephants
performing in traveling shows such as circuses paints a romantic
picture of elephants as gentle giants. The editorial board seems to buy
into the animal extremists' idealistic scenario of happy, fat pachyderms
lazily wandering the open plains of Africa or the jungles of Asia, free
of disease and conflict with humans.
The reality is far grimmer. The "wild" left for these
magnificent animals is rapidly disappearing. Instead, these endangered
and threatened animals are often contained within park ranges by fences,
or, when no fences exist, villages and fields block historic migration
routes, often leading to human-elephant conflict. In Sri Lanka, an
island country with the highest elephant-to-human ratio, elephants
regularly raid farmers' fields, and human-elephant conflict sometimes
leads to deaths -- of both elephants and humans.
In Africa, elephants may walk for miles during the drought months to
find water and food -- a harsh reality that elephants in captivity don't
have to endure. Captive elephants don't face the threat of being killed
by humans from gunshot, electrocution or poisoning as they compete for
resources or because their ivory is a valuable commodity. While park
rangers do what they can to protect elephants from poachers, too many
are being slaughtered. Calves are orphaned and often die without human
intervention.
The imaginary Eden created by
animal extremists has elephants and humans coexisting without
interacting and ignores the reality of thousands of years of history. In
fact, Asian elephants have been working in their native lands with
their native peoples for thousands of years, just as horses
have in lands where horses and people are found together. The Times has
not called for an end to bridles on horses, but instead has demonized
the traditional tool for working with elephants.
Commands are taught first and foremost to permit personal interaction
between humans and elephants, which in turn allows for the provision of
better husbandry and veterinary care. These movements are not taught
through force or coercion, just as you would not beat your dog at home
to make him sit. Elephants at zoos and circuses are taught primarily
through a series of repetition and reward. Click here
for a good discussion on training elephants as well as a better
explanation of the Assn. of Zoos and Aquariums' policy referenced in the
editorial.
It is a good thing that people can see elephants at the L.A. Zoo or
up close through traveling circuses. The elephants act as ambassadors
for their species living in their range countries. While it may seem
pleasant for extremists to imagine a perfect scenario in which elephants
are set free to roam the hills of California to their hearts' content,
that isn't the world in which we live. Elephants need people to care for
them in captivity and to protect and conserve them in their range
lands.
by Deborah Olson
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