Befriend a Mahout

Mahouts are caregivers and shepherds to the captive elephants in our care. They are committed to providing a good quality of life to their individual elephant, which requires them to form a bond built around trust. Each mahout knows their elephant inside and out and can alert us if the elephant is ill, needs medical attention, or requires specialized care. The mahouts here at BLES take the welfare of their elephants very seriously and work day in and day out to create the retirement our elephants deserve.

We are endlessly grateful for our staff of mahouts and their commitment to elephant welfare. If you want to help us support our wonderful team, sponsor a mahout today!

Why Are Our Mahouts So Special?

All of our mahouts come from our local village of Baan Tuek, ensuring no BLES staff has to leave their families behind to find employment. We pay a competitive and fair salary to our mahouts and provide life insurance, social security, and a retirement plan. Our mahouts and their families are our family so we do all we can to provide for each and every family member through all phases of life.

Because our mahouts are well cared for, they continuously strive to provide the highest standard of care to the elephants.

  • Because BLES is located in a village, our land is intermixed with farmland owned by local people. To ensure our elephants do not cross into farmland and destroy crops, our mahouts act as shepherds. They ensure the elephants stay on BLES land where they can freely graze, socialize, and explore.

  • Many of the BLES mahouts come from generations of mahouts that have passed valuable knowledge down. However, the most important quality for a mahout is a deep passion for elephants, willingness to try new things, and patience to meet the elephants where they’re at. Every rescued elephant has their own set of challenges and traumas that they carry with them and each of our mahouts is above all else, willing to walk with them on their healing journey.

  • The majority of a typical day at BLES is spent out in the jungle where the elephants can just be elephants. Our mahouts assist with medical treatments including foot care some mornings, then walk their elephants out into the forest where they spend the day grazing and socializing.

    Since our mahouts are local, they spend most nights with their families. Two mahouts per night stay at the sanctuary, which means only one night per week per mahout. This ensures a healthy work life balance for every member of staff.