...on why it is important to keep mahouts smiling if you want to put a smile on an elephant's face.

By John
2 March 2010 02:06:00

It seems odd but, in this cut and thrust world we live in, I am often asked whether we treat our mahouts too well?  I'm not going to point fingers and name names but there is a great perception there in the outside world that perhaps we've gone a step or two too far in cosseting our elephant owning friends by not only catering to the every whim of their elephants but by covering enough of their living costs that they are seen to have the same level disposable income that, for instance, a normal hotel employee would have, several steps up from hand to mouth villager; all the mahouts, it seems, now have mobile phones and we must have the highest percentage of Toyota Hiluxes and shiny new motorbikes among the staff than any other ele camp in the world - that all the money we pay now goes to pay off bank loans is not necessarily my fault, I offer free ele care, not financial advice (though, being me, I have been prone to asking a few folks whose income I know intimately because I sign the cheques whether they are not just a little crazy).

    It is also true that villagers who started delivering elephant food to our four elephants six years ago used to borrow farmer's single cylinder diesel engine powered trucks (glorified rotivators, lot e-ten in local parlance) now deliver in shiny pick-ups.

    To be honest it makes me feel good to see, but we do set ourselves up as a scientific charity and there's always the question, where's the line?  At what point do you cease to protect what you set out to save?  At what point do you breed reliance on your project and therefore become unsustainable?

    I have to admit, if I were a mahout's son, I wouldn't choose to follow in my father's footsteps (though you could probably guess this of me as even though I wasn't a mahout's son I didn't follow in my father's footsteps), however I don't come from a strong tribal tradition where my father's trade is also my cultural identity - those farmers out there may understand the connection rather better than me, why would you choose a trade that you know will be tough and never make you any money?

    So let's admit it is in the blood, as part of their identity these guys have to own an elephant (and the validity and purpose of that cultural identity in the modern world is a debate I keep promising you I'll have), but elephants don't grow on trees and they can no longer be caught from the wild so somebody has to procure an elephant, the luckiest have one born to the family but even then there are stud fees and, of course, the cost of raising the elephant until it can earn a living.  Those that don't have an elephant have to find one from somewhere and that, in the vast majority of cases, involves borrowing money - either from the banks or, as an elephant isn't really good collateral, from less formal places (who, of course, carry their own terms).

    Once you have the elephant, though, the job isn't over, the forest to let them go and forage between jobs no longer exists so you find yourself with a very large mouth to feed in addition to the more normal human task of looking after your family and in order to do that you must follow your chosen (or that which is thrust upon you) profession - you must go and be a mahout. 

    For those of us in the business of trying to provide an alternative lifestyle for the elephant than living on the street or working hour after hour in trekking camps I believe it is essential that we start looking at mahout and elephant as small business units in their own right, that we don't look at the rent we pay as a handout or a wage, that we don't look at the fodder we give as a gift to help underprivileged people - it is not enough to provide just what is required and expect them to be grateful for the honour of survival, we wouldn't consider argument with normal employees (who among us would consider working just to make ends meet, who doesn't want a quality of life, a chance to save for the future?) why would we consider it with our mahouts.

    Now, I see the argument that we shouldn't over pamper, that if life gets too comfortable then it will be difficult to dissuade sons from following fathers and in the grand, scientific, sense sons following fathers in this particular tradition is something that we should ask ourselves whether we want to encourage but, at this stage in the proceedings the official policy is to maintain or even increase the domestic population - if this is your policy you will need the next generation of instinctive, born-on-the-elephant, mahouts.

    Quite apart from anything else, if the good mahouts default on their loans the elephants fall into the hands of those who don't know much about elephants at all but know all about making money and, whatever your vision for the future of domestic elephants, that can't be a good thing for the present herd.

    So, sound business reasons aside, I don't feel too guilty for the over pampering, whatever your reasons for wanting elephants off the streets it makes conservation sense to ensure the people who you are asking to change their way of life are comfortable in the place you want them to be and, as every politician and Public Relations Officer knows, if you are going to preach your crazy ideas, it always helps to make sure your audience has a full belly and a few fun toys to play with.