背景:在过去的二十年中,泰国的大象已从从事伐木业的工作转变为旅游业。2020年,大约有2700头圈养大象参加了骑马和徒步旅行等活动。在工作时间,骑着大象背着一个或两个人坐在马鞍上,脖子上挂着一个兆头,一天几个小时,在不同的地形上。令人担忧的是,这种形式的骑行会对肌肉骨骼系统造成严重伤害,尽管迄今为止还没有实证研究来确定重量运输对大象运动学的影响。
方法:来自清迈省一个营地的八头亚洲象,泰国,年龄在21至41岁之间,平均体重为3265±140.2kg,在两种条件下进行评估:在没有鞍座的情况下以正常速度行走,并且体重负荷为15%(鞍座和两个人加上额外的重量)。步态运动学,包括前肢和后肢关节的最大角度,使用带有无线传感器的新型三维惯性测量系统确定。
结果:前肢和后肢的运动角度和运动范围之间没有统计学差异,当额外添加15%的体重时。
结论:没有证据表明携带15%的体重负荷会导致大象步态模式发生重大变化。因此,在马鞍上携带两个人可能对肌肉骨骼功能影响很小。需要更多的研究来进一步测试在不同类型的地形上骑行的更长持续时间,以便为圈养大象制定适当的工作指南。然而,大象似乎能够在背部承受大量重量,而不会表现出身体不适的迹象。
BACKGROUND: Elephants in Thailand have changed their roles from working in the logging industry to tourism over the past two decades. In 2020, there were approximately 2700 captive elephants participating in activities such as riding and trekking. During work hours, riding elephants carry one or two people in a
saddle on the back with a mahout on the neck several hours a day and over varying terrain. A concern is that this form of riding can cause serious injuries to the musculoskeletal system, although to date there have been no empirical studies to determine the influence of weight carriage on kinematics in elephants.
METHODS: Eight Asian elephants from a camp in Chiang Mai Province, Thailand, aged between 21 and 41 years with a mean body mass of 3265 ± 140.2 kg, were evaluated under two conditions: walking at a normal speed without a
saddle and with a 15% body mass load (
saddle and two persons plus additional weights). Gait kinematics, including the maximal angles of fore- and hindlimb joints, were determined using a novel three-dimensional inertial measurement system with wireless sensors.
RESULTS: There were no statistical differences between movement angles and a range of motion of the fore- and hindlimbs, when an additional 15% of body mass was added.
CONCLUSIONS: There is no evidence that carrying a 15% body mass load causes significant changes in elephant gait patterns. Thus, carrying two people in a
saddle may have minimal effects on musculoskeletal function. More studies are needed to further test longer durations of riding on different types of terrain to develop appropriate working guidelines for captive elephants. Nevertheless, elephants appear capable of carrying significant amounts of weight on the back without showing signs of physical distress.