Asian elephants are intelligent, sacred, and unique animals, and they are endangered.
Thai people have developed a deep and complex bond with their elephants over thousands of
years. The strength and integrity of this bond is currently dissolving; this has caused people
to treat elephants with less respect. The number of elephants in Thailand has plummeted from
approximately 100,000 elephants in the early 1900s to around 5,000 at present. We found that
the decrease in elephant numbers is related to the conditions of locations that elephants
currently inhabit. Sadly, we have concluded that there is currently no place in Thailand that
provides optimal living conditions for the endangered Asian elephant. We have also found
that the current locations inhabited by Asian elephants vary greatly in their provisions for
both physical and psychological well-being. Ultimately, we have concluded that peoples’
perceptions of elephants influence their actions, define elephants’ living conditions, and
therefore set the standards of well-being for elephants