Boon Thong

It took months of planning, hours of driving, negotiation delays with owners and government officials, and plenty of fundraising to bring Boon Thong home to BLES.

Boon Thong (Merit), was in such a poor state when we found her. Blind in one eye, her ears were ripped, her back was seriously deformed and her head misshapen - a shocking and lasting result of non stop beatings. Scars covered her thin, boney body and she suffered from dehydration and constipation. On top of all of this, Boon Thong had a huge swelling on her elbow, her toenails were brittle, cracked and overgrown and her tail hair was missing.

Boon Thong had been kept in deplorable conditions. She spent her evenings chained down, surrounded by mountains of urine soaked dung and human trash so deep, that she couldn’t lie down to sleep. Instead, she would stereotype, swaying side to side, to relieve her chronic pain and endless boredom. Her days were spent ferrying tourists around, who would clamber all over her exhausted body, just to get their five minutes of fun.

After a 10-hour drive, from Pattaya, we arrived at BLES. Boon Thong climbed down from the truck and headed straight for the pile of corn that had been specially prepared for her. From the brightness in her eyes, we could tell that she knew she was finally free to explore, meet the new herd, sample a banana tree and after 6 decades of abuse and deprivation, she could begin a new life as a real elephant - a free elephant .

Some elephants  are able to put their past behind them fairly quickly, others need more time. Boon Thong needed the peace and space that BLES is famous for. She eventually worked through her trauma at her own pace and became sociable and carefree. Her transformation was remarkable and truly humbling.

Boon Thong’s passing was peaceful and she transitioned with ease. She was a defiant and strong lady, right until the end and we all miss her dearly.