Teak Logging With Elephants In Siam 1925

Wonderful vintage film of elephants working in the teak forests. Horse people will understand what they are doing with their feet and legs. Remember there is no bit in the elephants mouth, and they sit behind the head and not in the middle of the back. That way they can "push/bump" the ears with their feet for "direction". Push right ear, go left. Push left ear, go right. Go away from pressure is the rudiments of riding an animal. They encourage "faster" with "active legs/squeeze." How different is it from riding a horse? If you are walking and leading the horse, you have a rope, which you use to "pull him to you with pressure" in the direction you want. The exact opposite of "push/bump him away from pressure" if you are mounted. Mahouts have a "spur" or an ankus which is pictured below. If while you are mounted, and you are asking him to go away from pressure, and need to reinforce that request, the ankus is placed on the left shoulder, to go right and the right shoulder to go left. It is pulled, instead of pushed as a spur would be used. Because he is not wearing a bit, it is placed on his forhead to "half halt" or to "whoa" if that is necessary. It is used from the ground to lift, usually the back foot so that they can mount. Pressure is applied at the cannon if the foot is not lifted by voice, as the animal has been taught(don't forget an elephant has "knees" and not a hock like a horse.

If you are on the ground and not mounted, and have no rope for leading the elephant, the bull hook, which the numbnuts is holding in the below picture, is used. It is an ankus with the addition of a point on the end of it. Because you are not mounted that "additional point" is used like a spur, or leg pressure to "push/bump" away. The hook is used like a rope to
"pull" him to you with the same pressure used to push. It is no more designed for punishment then a spur or a lead rope. Can it be mis-used? Absolutly, as can spurs, lead ropes, choke collars, leashes, etc. You can kill somebody with a hammer, or you can use it, as it was intended, to pound in nails. I saw a misguided psycho one time, who could not control his temper, throw a saddle at a horse 4 times because the horse lunged as he was saddling it. I know damn well that is not the purpose of a saddle, but the individual did not use the saddle as it was intended, and that is where the abuse was at. It was the individual, not the saddle. It is the individual, not the hammer. It is the individual, not the bull hook or ankus.



The proper use of the hook is for training, and technically as a "guide"(bumping like a spur, pulling like a lead), so that might be a good PC word, as long as "hook" offends more then "spur" or "lead". I remember when everybody in the zoo field started calling it an "ankus" about 15 years ago, because nobody who spoke English knew what that was. Now that they learned it means "bull hook in hindu", I guess calling it a guide is the next step. LOL As mentioned above, elephants are taught to move away from the pressure of the hook. If you want the elephant to lift it's foot, you place the hook behind the foot you want, use a little pressure, and say foot, and they pick their foot up. Evenually you only have to stand by the foot you want and say foot, using the hook only if "foot" needs to be reinforced. Horsemen, any different then using a whip(go away from pressure) to get a horse to lift it's leg to start a Spanish Walk? Elephants can be taught to Spanish Walk, and also skip with their back feet. Can your horse? No, because he doesn't have knees like an elephant. He has hocks, remember?
An elephant is not afraid of a hook, as a horse is not afraid of a bit or spurs. Unless those tools have been used in the wrong way to hurt him. If that is the case, they can even be taught to fear a saddle, as the psycho mentioned above was able to do. A hook is sharper then a spur, because an elephant has different skin then a horse, An elephants skin is almost an inch thick, and the sharpness prevents the hook from scratching or tearing the skin. This putz below is trying to show how sharp it is by using his finger. We are humans and have sensitive finger tips, idiot. I used to test all of my hooks that way after I made them. I would balance it on my finger and if I could not tolerate the pressure from the weight of the handle for half a minute, it was too sharp, and I would file it down, until I could tolerate the pressure with the weight for 30 sec. I also never had the point on the end. My hooks have a flat point, if that makes sense. I never needed more then a "dressage spur" to get them to move away. But that is just me and my way. All Trainers, regardless of the animals trained, are different. As all school teachers are different. The great ones get the message across, and the students respect them, but don't fear them.