Exhausted elephants believed to be so weak that they were held up by chains around their necks have been discovered at an animal camp in Thailand.
The emaciated jumbos were discovered by outraged tourists visiting Chang Puak Camp, which offers elephant rides and shows, in Ratchaburi province on June 15.
The three elephants - Plai See Dor Thong Pool, 15, Plai Boon Mee, 15, and Plai Kham Kaew, 45 - were reportedly so weak they had to be held up by chains around their necks.
Harrowing video footage and pictures showed the thin elephants slumped over the metal poles as they struggled to stand up and were unable to move freely.
Exhausted jumbos were found chained to poles by their necks (pictured) by tourists visiting Chang Puak Camp, which offers elephant rides and shows, in Ratchaburi province on June 15
The animals are believed to have been suffering from neglect after the Covid-19 pandemic killed international tourism in Thailand - decimating up to 20 per cent of the country's GDP.
But the elephants were finally found on June 18 by officers from the Department of Livestock Development (DLD) after the animal camp was reported to authorities.
The elephants were unchained and taken away to be checked, before they were returned to the animal camp, where they remain now.
A DLD spokesman said: 'We visited the camp after receiving reports to confirm and saw the animals tied using chains. We are now investigating the mahouts why they had to do that.
'We have also warned them not to repeat it or they could be charged with violation of our animal protection laws.'
Camp official and mahout Thavorn Parnkaew apologised after the incident and denied that they were being cruel to the animals.
The three elephants - Plai See Dor Thong Pool, 15, Plai Boon Mee, 15, and Plai Kham Kaew, 45 - were reportedly so weak they had to be held up by chains around their necks (pictured)
Harrowing video and pictures showed the thin elephants slumped over the metal poles (left and right) as they struggled to stand up and were unable to move freely while chained up
The elephants (pictured) were found on June 18 by officers from the Department of Livestock Development (DLD) after the animal camp was reported to authorities
The animals (pictured) are believed to have been suffering from neglect after the Covid-19 pandemic killed international tourism in Thailand
He insisted that the elephants had been chained up due to 'safety concerns' and added that he will tell the mahouts not to tie the animals by their necks anymore.
The elephant trainer continued: 'Many of our mahouts were laid off because of the Covid-19.
'The camp could not shoulder the cost of paying them while sustaining food for the elephants so we had to retrench some of them.
'We now face a shortage of mahouts to take care of the elephants so we had to chain them for safety concerns. We always take good care of them like our family.
'We apologise and will instruct all of our mahouts at the camp not to tie the elephants by their necks again. We hope for everyone's understanding.'
Animal rights groups, including People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA), have campaigned for the country to
