The Singapore Zoo will no longer offer elephant rides from Jan. 5, 2015, as it transitions to a protected contact elephant management system, Channel NewsAsia reports.
The Wildlife Reserves Singapore (WRS) has said that the system will be implemented in the next three to five years at both the Zoo and the Night Safari, making them the earliest adopters of the system in Asia.
Staff will be trained to conduct all interactions with the animals through a physical safety barrier and more positive reinforcement methods, such as food rewards, will be used.
There are currently eight elephants at the Singapore Zoo and two at the Night Safari. Photo: Wikimedia Commons
The new system, which will take three to five years to be implemented, will require all staff training and interaction with elephants to be conducted through a physical safety barrier. The system will be based on positive reinforcement where animals are motivated by rewards such as food.
Said Dr Cheng Wen-Haur, the Chief Life Sciences Officer at WRS: “The decision to adopt the protected contact management system was made after an internal review by our elephant managers and healthcare experts, who found that this system of management offers a safer work environment for the elephant keepers.
"Importantly, the new system will continue to allow our keepers access to the elephants for their daily care, although separated by a safety barrier.”
Though elephant rides and other activities where elephants are taken out of their exhibits will cease, “visitors to Singapore Zoo will still be able to enjoy the Elephants at Work and Play show, and take part in elephant feeding sessions which happens after each show,” added WRS.
The Singapore Zoo will no longer offer elephant rides from Jan. 5, 2015, as it transitions to a protected contact elephant management system, Channel NewsAsia reports.
The Wildlife Reserves Singapore (WRS) has said that the system will be implemented in the next three to five years at both the Zoo and the Night Safari, making them the earliest adopters of the system in Asia.
Staff will be trained to conduct all interactions with the animals through a physical safety barrier and more positive reinforcement methods, such as food rewards, will be used.
There are currently eight elephants at the Singapore Zoo and two at the Night Safari. Photo: Wikimedia Commons
The new system, which will take three to five years to be implemented, will require all staff training and interaction with elephants to be conducted through a physical safety barrier. The system will be based on positive reinforcement where animals are motivated by rewards such as food.
Said Dr Cheng Wen-Haur, the Chief Life Sciences Officer at WRS: “The decision to adopt the protected contact management system was made after an internal review by our elephant managers and healthcare experts, who found that this system of management offers a safer work environment for the elephant keepers.
"Importantly, the new system will continue to allow our keepers access to the elephants for their daily care, although separated by a safety barrier.”
Though elephant rides and other activities where elephants are taken out of their exhibits will cease, “visitors to Singapore Zoo will still be able to enjoy the Elephants at Work and Play show, and take part in elephant feeding sessions which happens after each show,” added WRS.