Jungle Elephant Care
Mae Chaem

Trunk is very proud to be a huge advocate of supporting captive elephants in Asia. Having an 11 year history of working alongside communities and Mahout’s that have dedicated their lives to supporting the welfare of these incredible giants, the team at Trunk know a thing or two about what it takes to ensure that elephants no longer living wild have an enriched lifestyle that offers safety, healthcare, love and that all elephants are treated with the respect they deserve.
The following project would not be possible without volunteers willing to give up their time to benefit the daily life of these amazing animals, contributing both time and much needed funds. We can assure you that if you join this project not only will you have the experience of a lifetime, you will also see from day one how your volunteer funds are used and how much of a difference they make to the project, the elephants and the local communities.

​From the moment you arrive, you will become a very valuable member of the team by observing our elephants in their natural habitat, collecting essential data and immersing yourself in to the community and teaching projects, you will be kept very busy.

​The elephants supported by this project are some of the very few lucky elephants who get to roam in the forest as freely as possible. Due to declining natural habitat and tourist demands, many elephants are forced into unnatural behaviours and are not treated with the right love and care. Our elephants always come first and we do everything in our power to create a life for them that’s as natural as possible.

​To observe the elephants we will hike out to their location so being a little bit fit is helpful, however you certainly don’t need to be an olympic athlete!. Due to the extreme weather here in Thailand these hikes can be unpredictable and different everyday, depending on where our elephants choose to spend their time. Basically, we do the hard work here so the elephants don’t have to!

Please also be aware that as stated, we want our elephants to have as natural a life as possible with little human influence. You will get the chance to feed fruit or carry out health checks, which is a great opportunity to take a few photos with the elephants, but most of the time will be spent observing their beauty and natural behaviours, a much more rewarding experience, we can promise you!

After breakfast one of our team will transfer you to your project pick-up point in the city. You will be starting your journey to the village at 9am and it’s likely that other members of the team will be joining you on the journey.

The truck or ‘song-thaew’ will stop off along the way to buy bananas for our elephants and there will also be a stop off lunch and to freshen up in the delightful village of Mae Chaem. Once we arrive at the village, you will be introduced to your homestay, cook dinner with them, receive a tour, learn more about the project and meet the rest of the team.