Tiger Temple Kanchanaburi - Avoid
Jan 10th, 2008, 11:06 PM
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Tiger Temple Kanchanaburi - Avoid
I hope that by getting this to you and a few websites I can play some minor part in providing information and hopefully doing something about stopping what is going on in the name of Buddhism and Conservation at this "Sanctuary" for wild animals – or at the very least stopping tourists from supporting this.
I applied to volunteer at the Tiger Temple because I wanted to be a part of the promised “tigers roaming free with Buddhist monks” experience – having an interest in both wild animals and Buddhism. Although I understood that there was probably an element of “marketing speak” due to the fund raising slant in the promotion of the Temple and the mysticism of the whole experience, I thought that, due to my research on the Temple website and other pages and blogs my expectations were realistic in terms of how these animals lived and were treated.
The animal cruelty and abuse at the Temple was blatant and obvious to me from the minute I arrived. (The first animal I came across was at the Volunteer’s House, a young and very distressed female cat who was engorged and in agony with too much milk. Her five 2 week old kittens had been removed from her by Temple staff and – we were told - taken to a “Cat Temple”. I was surprised and upset to come across an animal in such distress as this was not how I would imagine a sanctuary would treat any animal).
I arrived mid morning and on my first day one of the other volunteers who’d been there for a few weeks took me around to show me the captive animals. (There is also a large number of farm type animals – goats, cows, horses, chickens - and water buffalo, deer, wild boar and peacocks roaming around the Temple grounds.)
The first cage I came across was a large “chicken wire” cage under a tree with a hawk in it. The bird apparently had a broken wing. It is never released from the cage.
Then there was a row of concrete cages with single adult tigers, one with the baby tigers, and at the end of the row (with a large generator placed in front of it so one couldn’t really see what was in this dark, dingy dungeon) a leopard who has, apparently, not been let out of the cage since she arrived there 8 years ago.
My next visit was to a large, double sized concrete cage almost out of view of all the other cages, where they keep two very young (I would estimate them to be about 6 months old) lion cubs. The cage is bare but for a concrete bowl of water. There is nowhere for them to shelter or hide (they are clearly terrified of humans) and certainly nothing for them to play with – no tyres or branches or any sort of toys. We then saw all the other tigers – either on their own or with two in a cage.
Some of the tigers are never released from their concrete cages. But others, on average 8 tigers a day (usually the same better behaved and better looking tigers – not the stroppy ones or those with scars or bloody eyes) are taken into the Canyon to be photographed with tourists. This “outing” liberates them from their cages for a 10 minute walk on stony gravel to the Canyon, three hours chained by the neck to a ring in the blazing sun, and a 10 minute walk back “home” to their cages.
On their way to and from the canyon the tigers are encouraged to move by being lifted by the base of the tail, shoved and punched. One “tiger girl” would always walk next to the tiger with a garden hoe in her hand, this she waved in front of the tiger’s face or banged on the ground next to it whenever it slowed down or stopped. (The threat was implicit, but the tiger was motivated to move whenever it saw that hoe.) Whilst in the Canyon, the tigers are disciplined with Tiger Balm being rubbed onto their faces, tiger urine being sprayed into their mouths and (surreptitiously, but in full view of tourists) being punched quickly on the face and head.
As to whether the animals are drugged or not, I cannot be sure. (Although sedation would surely be the kindest way of helping them get through those long hot hours in the canyon.) The argument against drugging is the expense and, I believe, the difficulty of dosage (meticulously worked out amount of drug to body weight) – although local herbs mixed in with their boiled chicken could possibly work. (Some of them were completely unresponsive all the time, even when we visited their cages in the early mornings or in the evenings, and this could possibly imply properly prescribed drugs.)
In the Canyon the volunteers are there essentially for crowd control. I felt ashamed at being apparently complicit in the running of this circus - which is really no more than a money making scam where tourists are required to “donate” B300 to come into a Buddhist Temple (illegal to charge, by the way), and another B1000 for a ‘special’ photo with a tigers head placed in your lap. This place is operated along the lines of a very badly run zoo with no money - not an animal sanctuary which receives all this money (work it out, an average of 400 people a day – and that’s on a slow day – with, say, very conservatively 50 people paying for photos) from tourists.
Much of the money received over the years since the Animal Planet programme has been promoting it (since about 2003, I think) appears to have been (very recently, as in it has just started being built) spent on building a "Buddhist Park Project" which will essentially be an area to accommodate the followers of the Abbot's Teacher when he comes to visit the Temple!
The Tiger Island (“for their freedom and return to the forest”) which is apparently the reason we all throw money at the Temple is not yet complete, but seems to be nothing more that an area for tiger cages with a moat built around it so tourists can't actually get at them and see how they live – they will still operate the Canyon Photo Circus and, as they will still be hand reared, there is no plan to release tigers back into the wild.
Although we could wander around the cages at any time and watch the workers with the tigers, volunteers were now prevented from ever actually being with the tigers (no cleaning of cages, no bathing of babies) and I was only ever really in the same position as the tourists and never able to see how the staff treated the animals when there were no tourists watching them – but I feel that the way the tigers cringed away from chains, lengths of hose pipe, the garden hoe and some of the male staff members, that there was certainly discipline metered out behind ‘closed doors’.
In the morning the baby tigers are brought to the temple where we have breakfast and are allowed to roam around with the monks, staff and volunteers. Every time a cub came anywhere near one of the volunteers, a staff member would yank it away, the babies (four of them are really little, 2 months old and one quite boisterous 5 month old – he was tied to a pillar) were pulled around by one leg or held back by the tail, slapped so they skidded across the wooden floor boards, thrown up into the air, their faces held and noses punched, pinched and flicked, they were continuously mauled, teased and tormented. I have to admit that I couldn’t stand it for very long and my planned 4 week stay lasted a mere 4 days.
There is a flagrant lack of respect and compassion and certainly no love for these tigers. And this lack of feeling clearly gets worse as the animals get older and bigger and stronger.
Essentially, the animal welfare laws in South East Asia are not stringent enough to close down this establishment due to the cruelty and abuse that is metered out there (along with the illegal breeding - one tigress is kept with the sole purpose of producing cubs - which are removed from her almost immediately after birth and reared by humans).
All we can do in the short term is spread the word to stop tourists from supporting this place. Please boycott the Tiger Temple and report what you have seen to animal welfare organisations like Care for the Wild – www.careforthewild.com
I applied to volunteer at the Tiger Temple because I wanted to be a part of the promised “tigers roaming free with Buddhist monks” experience – having an interest in both wild animals and Buddhism. Although I understood that there was probably an element of “marketing speak” due to the fund raising slant in the promotion of the Temple and the mysticism of the whole experience, I thought that, due to my research on the Temple website and other pages and blogs my expectations were realistic in terms of how these animals lived and were treated.
The animal cruelty and abuse at the Temple was blatant and obvious to me from the minute I arrived. (The first animal I came across was at the Volunteer’s House, a young and very distressed female cat who was engorged and in agony with too much milk. Her five 2 week old kittens had been removed from her by Temple staff and – we were told - taken to a “Cat Temple”. I was surprised and upset to come across an animal in such distress as this was not how I would imagine a sanctuary would treat any animal).
I arrived mid morning and on my first day one of the other volunteers who’d been there for a few weeks took me around to show me the captive animals. (There is also a large number of farm type animals – goats, cows, horses, chickens - and water buffalo, deer, wild boar and peacocks roaming around the Temple grounds.)
The first cage I came across was a large “chicken wire” cage under a tree with a hawk in it. The bird apparently had a broken wing. It is never released from the cage.
Then there was a row of concrete cages with single adult tigers, one with the baby tigers, and at the end of the row (with a large generator placed in front of it so one couldn’t really see what was in this dark, dingy dungeon) a leopard who has, apparently, not been let out of the cage since she arrived there 8 years ago.
My next visit was to a large, double sized concrete cage almost out of view of all the other cages, where they keep two very young (I would estimate them to be about 6 months old) lion cubs. The cage is bare but for a concrete bowl of water. There is nowhere for them to shelter or hide (they are clearly terrified of humans) and certainly nothing for them to play with – no tyres or branches or any sort of toys. We then saw all the other tigers – either on their own or with two in a cage.
Some of the tigers are never released from their concrete cages. But others, on average 8 tigers a day (usually the same better behaved and better looking tigers – not the stroppy ones or those with scars or bloody eyes) are taken into the Canyon to be photographed with tourists. This “outing” liberates them from their cages for a 10 minute walk on stony gravel to the Canyon, three hours chained by the neck to a ring in the blazing sun, and a 10 minute walk back “home” to their cages.
On their way to and from the canyon the tigers are encouraged to move by being lifted by the base of the tail, shoved and punched. One “tiger girl” would always walk next to the tiger with a garden hoe in her hand, this she waved in front of the tiger’s face or banged on the ground next to it whenever it slowed down or stopped. (The threat was implicit, but the tiger was motivated to move whenever it saw that hoe.) Whilst in the Canyon, the tigers are disciplined with Tiger Balm being rubbed onto their faces, tiger urine being sprayed into their mouths and (surreptitiously, but in full view of tourists) being punched quickly on the face and head.
As to whether the animals are drugged or not, I cannot be sure. (Although sedation would surely be the kindest way of helping them get through those long hot hours in the canyon.) The argument against drugging is the expense and, I believe, the difficulty of dosage (meticulously worked out amount of drug to body weight) – although local herbs mixed in with their boiled chicken could possibly work. (Some of them were completely unresponsive all the time, even when we visited their cages in the early mornings or in the evenings, and this could possibly imply properly prescribed drugs.)
In the Canyon the volunteers are there essentially for crowd control. I felt ashamed at being apparently complicit in the running of this circus - which is really no more than a money making scam where tourists are required to “donate” B300 to come into a Buddhist Temple (illegal to charge, by the way), and another B1000 for a ‘special’ photo with a tigers head placed in your lap. This place is operated along the lines of a very badly run zoo with no money - not an animal sanctuary which receives all this money (work it out, an average of 400 people a day – and that’s on a slow day – with, say, very conservatively 50 people paying for photos) from tourists.
Much of the money received over the years since the Animal Planet programme has been promoting it (since about 2003, I think) appears to have been (very recently, as in it has just started being built) spent on building a "Buddhist Park Project" which will essentially be an area to accommodate the followers of the Abbot's Teacher when he comes to visit the Temple!
The Tiger Island (“for their freedom and return to the forest”) which is apparently the reason we all throw money at the Temple is not yet complete, but seems to be nothing more that an area for tiger cages with a moat built around it so tourists can't actually get at them and see how they live – they will still operate the Canyon Photo Circus and, as they will still be hand reared, there is no plan to release tigers back into the wild.
Although we could wander around the cages at any time and watch the workers with the tigers, volunteers were now prevented from ever actually being with the tigers (no cleaning of cages, no bathing of babies) and I was only ever really in the same position as the tourists and never able to see how the staff treated the animals when there were no tourists watching them – but I feel that the way the tigers cringed away from chains, lengths of hose pipe, the garden hoe and some of the male staff members, that there was certainly discipline metered out behind ‘closed doors’.
In the morning the baby tigers are brought to the temple where we have breakfast and are allowed to roam around with the monks, staff and volunteers. Every time a cub came anywhere near one of the volunteers, a staff member would yank it away, the babies (four of them are really little, 2 months old and one quite boisterous 5 month old – he was tied to a pillar) were pulled around by one leg or held back by the tail, slapped so they skidded across the wooden floor boards, thrown up into the air, their faces held and noses punched, pinched and flicked, they were continuously mauled, teased and tormented. I have to admit that I couldn’t stand it for very long and my planned 4 week stay lasted a mere 4 days.
There is a flagrant lack of respect and compassion and certainly no love for these tigers. And this lack of feeling clearly gets worse as the animals get older and bigger and stronger.
Essentially, the animal welfare laws in South East Asia are not stringent enough to close down this establishment due to the cruelty and abuse that is metered out there (along with the illegal breeding - one tigress is kept with the sole purpose of producing cubs - which are removed from her almost immediately after birth and reared by humans).
All we can do in the short term is spread the word to stop tourists from supporting this place. Please boycott the Tiger Temple and report what you have seen to animal welfare organisations like Care for the Wild – www.careforthewild.com
Jan 11th, 2008, 05:20 AM
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bushchick,
Do you have any evidence of the mistreatment like pictures, videos etc? I ask because if this is real, and sorry to be a skeptic but this is the first day you have post something on Fodors, you could send it to the newspaper, or related government agency in Thailand. The department of national park and wildlife is to place to contact.
Do you have any evidence of the mistreatment like pictures, videos etc? I ask because if this is real, and sorry to be a skeptic but this is the first day you have post something on Fodors, you could send it to the newspaper, or related government agency in Thailand. The department of national park and wildlife is to place to contact.
Jan 11th, 2008, 06:12 AM
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Bushchick-
Haven't you posted this repeatedly on the Trip Advisor website? And hasn't it been repeatedly removed?
I was just there last month. I wanted to see this for myself after reading all the pros and cons. I saw absolutely no evidence of animal abuse and we walked all over the property. In fact, it appeared that there was quite a bit of new consctruction going on for the multiple new, much larger, enclosures for the tigers.
I never saw the tigers threatened in any way. No tails pulled. No punching. No threats with garden tools.
I'm assuming since you were a volunteer you complained, right? What happened when you did so? And how long ago was this?
There are two sides to every story. You complain that they charge 300 baht admission. Yes they do. But when it was "donation only" they didn't receive enough to support the animals there. How much do you think it costs to support a dozen full grown tigers plus all the other animals there, every day? It's not like these tigers can be "released back into the wild". They would all be at risk of being killed by poachers and those that have been raised there certainly would not have the skills needed to survive.
I'm not saying things are perfect there. In fact, the whole thing about being photographed with the tiger's head in your lap made me very uncomfortable so I did not do it. But, I don't think the tigers were drugged or abused in any way.
Haven't you posted this repeatedly on the Trip Advisor website? And hasn't it been repeatedly removed?
I was just there last month. I wanted to see this for myself after reading all the pros and cons. I saw absolutely no evidence of animal abuse and we walked all over the property. In fact, it appeared that there was quite a bit of new consctruction going on for the multiple new, much larger, enclosures for the tigers.
I never saw the tigers threatened in any way. No tails pulled. No punching. No threats with garden tools.
I'm assuming since you were a volunteer you complained, right? What happened when you did so? And how long ago was this?
There are two sides to every story. You complain that they charge 300 baht admission. Yes they do. But when it was "donation only" they didn't receive enough to support the animals there. How much do you think it costs to support a dozen full grown tigers plus all the other animals there, every day? It's not like these tigers can be "released back into the wild". They would all be at risk of being killed by poachers and those that have been raised there certainly would not have the skills needed to survive.
I'm not saying things are perfect there. In fact, the whole thing about being photographed with the tiger's head in your lap made me very uncomfortable so I did not do it. But, I don't think the tigers were drugged or abused in any way.
Jan 11th, 2008, 06:14 AM
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I have recently returned from Thailand and whilst in Bangkok visited the Tiger Temple with Tong. I saw absolutely no evidence whatsoever to support these claims! All the tigers looked healthy and well-treated, certainly not drugged, if they were, their pupils would be huge and we have numerous photos showing pinpoint pupils, a point substantiated by my friend who is a vet! Who also pointed out that it would dangerous to constantly sedate an animal all day, every day.
It was a day that I shall never forget, seeing such beautiful creatures alive and healthy rather than bits and pieces on a dinner plate, or skinned as a trophy!
It was a day that I shall never forget, seeing such beautiful creatures alive and healthy rather than bits and pieces on a dinner plate, or skinned as a trophy!
Jan 11th, 2008, 06:58 AM
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I agree with RobMac that this is sad to read. I loved being with the tigers - it was incredibly special.
But, who knows what goes on behind closed doors? We certainly were in no position to judge. It breaks my heart to think of the tigers being treated this way.
But, who knows what goes on behind closed doors? We certainly were in no position to judge. It breaks my heart to think of the tigers being treated this way.
Jan 11th, 2008, 08:20 AM
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i recently returned from a trip to Thailand and the Tiger Temple. My visit to the Tiger Temple was the highlite to my visit. Actually touching a real tiger defies the imagination. I talked to a Canadian volunteer who only spoke highly of his ongoing experience. my tiger experience definately raised my awareness of the plight of the asian tiger. many estimates claim that the asian tiger will be extinct in 10 years. I guess that some people will be happy once the tigers are extinct and not subject to any type of captivity.
Jan 11th, 2008, 08:37 AM
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I was very surprised to read this account and began to wonder abou tour plan to visit the Tiger Temple in June. I am glad to hear other people question it. I also had to remind myself of a website that outlines a very different volunteer experience: www.tigertemple.co.uk. Granted they were there in October 2006, but that's not that long ago and you don't say when you were there. I assume it is more recently, but even so, the difference in experiences is so great that I can't imagine things would deteriorate that quickly.
I have a belief that people become passionate about saving that which they are familiar with. If something threatened the coastline of Maine, I would get involved because I go there all the time. Likewise, I never really paid much attention to the news coming from Zimbabwe util I had been there and met the people. it was then a real place to me. So I think there is some benfit to having people encounter animals in a "zoo-like" setting as long as the animals are not being abused. You seem to think they are being, which would be very unfortunate. But the reports by many others are that it was an amazing and powerful experience that might cause them to think twice about environmental issues.
I have a belief that people become passionate about saving that which they are familiar with. If something threatened the coastline of Maine, I would get involved because I go there all the time. Likewise, I never really paid much attention to the news coming from Zimbabwe util I had been there and met the people. it was then a real place to me. So I think there is some benfit to having people encounter animals in a "zoo-like" setting as long as the animals are not being abused. You seem to think they are being, which would be very unfortunate. But the reports by many others are that it was an amazing and powerful experience that might cause them to think twice about environmental issues.
Jan 11th, 2008, 10:08 AM
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bushchick-
what is with the picture of the lions on your lodge website?(mentioned in your africa forum post)
www.thebushcamp.com/ourteam.html
I sure hope these lions are just sedated for medical research and not hunting trophies. Might want to add a photo caption if it is the former and not the latter
what is with the picture of the lions on your lodge website?(mentioned in your africa forum post)
www.thebushcamp.com/ourteam.html
I sure hope these lions are just sedated for medical research and not hunting trophies. Might want to add a photo caption if it is the former and not the latter
Jan 12th, 2008, 04:48 AM
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Having just returned from Thailand last night (trip report coming this weekend, I promise...) I have to say that the day we spent with tong at the Tiger Temple I too saw none of the mistreatment that bushchick describes. And those of you who have been with tong know that I seriously doubt she would take people there if she thought anyone was harming those animals. Yes, it's completely commercial, and as a tourist I found I was being more manhandled than the tigers, but I think we all knew that going in. I don't know if those animals are drugged or not, I hope they weren't. The main tiger that they have people take their picture with it's head in their lap was by no means very cooperative the day we were there, and when he didn't want to do something they wanted (like roll over so you could lay on his stomach and have your picture taken) he just refused and the abbot waved the handlers away.)As someone who worked for a time when I was in college at a small zoo, I would have like to have seen some better facilities for the other animals, like those lion cubs or even tongs favorite, Bam Bam. All in due course, I guess. We have different views of animal conservation than they do.
I enjoyed our day there, and would suggest people make up their own minds. I also add my suspicions to this person's post, for what it's worth...
I enjoyed our day there, and would suggest people make up their own minds. I also add my suspicions to this person's post, for what it's worth...
Jan 12th, 2008, 08:40 PM
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Quite a reaction. It is clear that my integrity is in question and nothing I can say will change this.
Yes, I did post this on TripAdvisor ... once, and it's still on there. As I say in this posting, I am trying to get this on a number of websites in the hope of doing something about it.
Yes, we did have photographic evidence. It is with Care for the Wild International.
The tigertemple.co.uk website is what convinced me to go ... although I never was able to get hold of the woman who wrote it. I cannot explain why things have deteriorated so rapidly since she stayed there. I was there in July 2007.
The picture of the lions on my website was taken after the lions had been sedated and vasectomised by a vet from www.catchco.co.za (although how this is relevant to tigers being abused in Kanchanaburi, I'm not sure? I'm also a little confused as to why the fact that I have also been to Rwanda, and "get around" is worth a mention.)
You are welcome to contact me. My name is Caroline Lucas and my email address is [email protected]
Yes, I did post this on TripAdvisor ... once, and it's still on there. As I say in this posting, I am trying to get this on a number of websites in the hope of doing something about it.
Yes, we did have photographic evidence. It is with Care for the Wild International.
The tigertemple.co.uk website is what convinced me to go ... although I never was able to get hold of the woman who wrote it. I cannot explain why things have deteriorated so rapidly since she stayed there. I was there in July 2007.
The picture of the lions on my website was taken after the lions had been sedated and vasectomised by a vet from www.catchco.co.za (although how this is relevant to tigers being abused in Kanchanaburi, I'm not sure? I'm also a little confused as to why the fact that I have also been to Rwanda, and "get around" is worth a mention.)
You are welcome to contact me. My name is Caroline Lucas and my email address is [email protected]
Jan 13th, 2008, 06:14 AM
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caroline....we get a few reports on this site from people who are trying to stir up trouble for one reason or another....usually they represent a rival faction to the person/place being attacked....like one guide writing false things about another guide....for this reason we are very suspect when people have no "history" with the web-site....this was your case in fact....when we check you out through the website we see that this is your first posting (other than the one done the same day on africa)....this makes us very suspicious.....that is why we had questions....then when you do not sign it or give any indication of who you are or your credentials then we have concern....
i hope you can understand this...
you are an animal activist, which is fine and you are entitled to your point of view and perfectly welcome to express it, which you have done.....
i would just point out that if this operation did not exist at all maybe all, or many of those animals would now be dead....
bob
i hope you can understand this...
you are an animal activist, which is fine and you are entitled to your point of view and perfectly welcome to express it, which you have done.....
i would just point out that if this operation did not exist at all maybe all, or many of those animals would now be dead....
bob
Jan 13th, 2008, 08:18 AM
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Wow, this is a really tough clique to break into! I have sent Bob an email privately justifying my existence, and would like to say that I have no reason to lie or exaggerate or make up anything regarding the temple ... there us no mileage to be gained in trashing a Buddhist animal sanctuary. So do with this posting what you will. And don't worry, I've learnt my lesson and shall not be entering into any further correspondence on this site! Happy travels, Fodorites
Jan 13th, 2008, 10:22 AM
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caroline....please do not feel that way....we welcome your contributions...as i pointed out to you, you just came out of the blue---bang--bang....knocking an institution that most of us felt was doing worth-while work...
a more gentle approach might have worked better with all of us...added to the fact that you had no previous fodors history, you become a target, just like people who try to advertise for free on this site.....
undoubtably the place is not doing everything right....may even be making mistakes and doing some harm, but as i tried to point out to you.....many, or most, of these animals might be dead if it were not for the actions undertaken daily at this animal park....
i look forward to my visit there in june....i will be on the lookout for infractions....i am not an animal activist, like yourself, so i may not recognize most issues...
a more gentle approach might have worked better with all of us...added to the fact that you had no previous fodors history, you become a target, just like people who try to advertise for free on this site.....
undoubtably the place is not doing everything right....may even be making mistakes and doing some harm, but as i tried to point out to you.....many, or most, of these animals might be dead if it were not for the actions undertaken daily at this animal park....
i look forward to my visit there in june....i will be on the lookout for infractions....i am not an animal activist, like yourself, so i may not recognize most issues...
Jan 13th, 2008, 12:24 PM
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Caroline, I think it is both reasonable and understandable that people want to know who you are and a bit about you in order to decide how to weigh your comments. In my book, your response to Bob,
"Wow, this is a really tough clique to break into! I have sent Bob an email privately justifying my existence, and would like to say that I have no reason to lie or exaggerate or make up anything regarding the temple ... there us no mileage to be gained in trashing a Buddhist animal sanctuary. So do with this posting what you will. And don't worry, I've learnt my lesson and shall not be entering into any further correspondence on this site! Happy travels, Fodorites"
makes you less credible . If you are an animal activist, no doubt you would be accustomed to meeting with skepticism. And you wouldn't be put off by it, but would responed to people's questions and concerns.
People have asked reasonable questions, a number of people on this board have been to the Tiger Temple and have not observed anything like what you report. They want to know why that is. That's a reasonable question. You've given some information, but your defensiveness ("It is clear that my integrity is in question and nothing I can say will change this."
keeps you from having the kind of dialogue with this thoughtful group of people that would be far more powerful than just posting and going away.
"Wow, this is a really tough clique to break into! I have sent Bob an email privately justifying my existence, and would like to say that I have no reason to lie or exaggerate or make up anything regarding the temple ... there us no mileage to be gained in trashing a Buddhist animal sanctuary. So do with this posting what you will. And don't worry, I've learnt my lesson and shall not be entering into any further correspondence on this site! Happy travels, Fodorites"
makes you less credible . If you are an animal activist, no doubt you would be accustomed to meeting with skepticism. And you wouldn't be put off by it, but would responed to people's questions and concerns.
People have asked reasonable questions, a number of people on this board have been to the Tiger Temple and have not observed anything like what you report. They want to know why that is. That's a reasonable question. You've given some information, but your defensiveness ("It is clear that my integrity is in question and nothing I can say will change this."
keeps you from having the kind of dialogue with this thoughtful group of people that would be far more powerful than just posting and going away.
Jan 14th, 2008, 12:14 AM
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I am an animal lover, not an animal activist. Just letting people know what I saw there ... I have a number of recognised academic reports on the treatment of the animals at the Temple. If anyone is genuinely interested in what's going on there, as opposed to just stirring the pot on this thread, I would be very happy to send them to you. You have my personal email address above, just ask.
