Showing 1 - 10 of 10
Unshackling gentle giants
Life, Melalin Mahavongtrakul, Published on 07/05/2018
» After trading our sneakers for knee-length boots, we trotted down to the riverbank where a boat was waiting for us. It was a short crossing to the other side of Nam Khan River to meet the elephants that happily approached us for bananas and sugar cane. They had no chains around their ankles. The mahouts stood nearby, keeping watch with no hooks in their hands. Later, they guided the gentle giants to walk along with the humans trailing nearby on muddy ground. The atmosphere was very friendly and calm, with a picturesque landscape of jungle, river and sky surrounding us.
Man versus dog
Life, Melalin Mahavongtrakul, Published on 22/05/2017
» Last week, a concerned father took to Facebook asking for justice for his seven-year-old daughter who was bitten by a stray dog. The incident took place on Koh Samui and the girl was immediately taken to hospital where she received injections to prevent tetanus and rabies. A big gash on her thigh meant she had to miss the first week of school.
At the animal café
Life, Melalin Mahavongtrakul, Published on 10/04/2017
» How do you like the idea of eating bakery and sipping on soda, all the while playing with cats, dogs, rabbits and more? It may sound off to some, but for many animal lovers, the experience feels just like heaven -- and can now be accomplished at animal cafés all over the country.
Into the holistic
Life, Melalin Mahavongtrakul, Published on 06/03/2017
» Each day at the break of dawn, 40-year-old Sa-nga Karnin emerges from the bamboo hut he shares with his wife and daughter wearing his uniform of blue denim, with a colourful pha khao ma wrapped around his neck. Then, it's work time. His priority as a mahout is Thongma, his trusted elephant who is in her 40s.
Refusing to let go
Life, Melalin Mahavongtrakul, Published on 24/08/2016
» Despite the improving healthcare and pet insurance that has been popular recently, all pet owners know -- though are unwilling to accept -- that death is eventually inescapable. While most just let go of their furry friends and pray against all odds that they may be reunited in the next lifetime, some people take matters into their own hands and spare no expense in trying to keep their pets by their side through the process of cloning.
The cost of companionship
Life, Melalin Mahavongtrakul, Published on 18/04/2016
» All pet owners would agree that some of the most difficult times in their lives come when their pets get sick. Those who can afford it will have a choice of taking them to private animal hospitals and veterinary clinics where services and treatment can be provided readily, in a pleasant environment, at a high cost. But pet owners who cannot afford the hefty bills must seek help from public clinics and hospitals, and the experience is not so different from public hospitals for people: long queues and hours of waiting in a not-always pleasant atmosphere.
Beast of a polo tournament
Life, Melalin Mahavongtrakul, Published on 17/03/2016
» Elephants stomping around the forest doing heavy dragging work is a familiar sight. Less so, though not entirely foreign now after more than a decade, is the sight of them taking to the grassy fields of a polo tournament, the big beasts chasing after a white ball with a kwan chang -- a mahout -- and a player perched on top. All for a good cause, of course.
Not just a pet love
Life, Melalin Mahavongtrakul, Published on 24/02/2016
» It can be a struggle to lift a dog weighing 30kg up and strap it into a wheelchair -- a stainless steel frame with two wheels fixed on it. But that's what Siriporn Kritsanaphiphat, aged 35, has been doing every day for almost three years for her pet Boonrawd.
A Trunk-Full of love
Life, Melalin Mahavongtrakul, Published on 19/08/2015
» Carol Buckley first encountered an elephant when she was 19 and that short moment became a turning point in her life. Drawn into their intelligence and playfulness -- and by her sympathy towards the neglected condition of elephants -- Buckley has been putting efforts towards improving their welfare for the last 40 years.
All creatures great and small
Life, Melalin Mahavongtrakul, Published on 10/07/2014
» When disaster strikes, everyone’s first priority is normally to look after themselves and their families. Not many would extend their kindness to others — neither human nor animal — in need.