THE MAHOUT IS BOTH THE MASTER AND THE
« HEALTHCARE SPECIALIST » OF HIS ELEPHANT.
Our mahouts:
All our mahouts come from the Brao ethnic group, they live in the two villages in the immediate vicinity of Airavata.
Hin, our chief mahout was born in 1960, he is married to the village shaman. Father of two daughters, he also has two grandchildren, he enjoys working in the fields and taking care of his cows and buffaloes.
Hin is our most experienced mahout, when he was young he worked with his father’s elephants all females: Ikoum, Itou, Itao, Kamplah and Iplah who is now in Siem Reap.
Kehem was born in 1988, he has two children, a boy and a girl. He likes teamwork and ladies, he practices voley ball
He worked with Bunang, a female who left for Siem Reap, as well as with Kamsen, who belonged to his father.
Kèm is Kehèm’s brother, he was born in 1982 and has 3 children, 1 son and two daughters. He worked with Kamsen from the age of 15. He enjoys drinking with his friends, working, fishing and gathering food in the forest.
Saroeun was born in 1993, he has a boy and his wife beats him when he drinks too much… He likes to fish to enrich the ordinary. He worked with two females, Kampouï and Kamvèn, who is now in Mondolkiri.
Thouï was born in 1995, he is married, father of a boy and worked with Kamsen.
Khueun was born in 1993, he is the youngest of our mahouts, he is not the most serious or the most focused, but he has a knack for making the whole team laugh. He has worked with 5 elephants; he enjoys working in the fields and playing volleyball.
THE BULL HOOK
One first needs to know that the elephant’s dermis is 2 ½ centimetres thick; males in particular are sometimes temperamental and hot-headed, they can bolt and cause accidents. Their safety as well as the safety of the people around depends on an optimum control of man on the animals. For this purpose our mahouts use a bull hook and if the animal becomes even more agitated they use a rattan root or a mallet.
It is impossible to correctly handle a 4 to 5 tons bull without these tools.
We do not want to harm our elephants but the durability of our project cannot be compromised by accidents !
“The hook [ankus, bull hook] is the mahout’s most important tool. It should be with him at all times when he is with the elephant, and he should know how to use it in such a way as to not injure the elephant.
Young mahouts should be repeatedly told that the real purpose of the hook is not to cause pain but rather to apply strong, clear pressure to very particular control points that the elephant has been trained to react to (stop, turn left, turn right, kneel, stand still, etc.). The hook also extends the mahout’s reach – like doubling the length of his arm. The hook should be of a suitable size and design for the mahout’s hand and for the size and nature of the elephant. The head should be on tight, and the handle should be neither broken nor slippery. The point should not be so sharp as to easily pierce the skin of the elephant.”