The investigation, which audited 25 attractions sold by Cook, found dolphins with badly damaged skin, heavily chained elephants showing signs of distress and other elephants forced to spin hoops, stand on small platforms and take part in a “tug-of- war”.
Assessment company Global Spirit found that 16 of the reviewed attractions did not meet the minimum standards for welfare set out by Abta, The Sunday Times reports.
According to the newspaper, Cook has instructed its agents to stop selling tickets to those attractions.
The 25 inspections were carried out last year and are the start of a plan to audit all of the 90 captive animal attractions that the operator sells.
Cook did not specify to the animal welfare infringements discovered at individual attractions but confirmed that among those dropped include Ocean World in the Dominican Republic and Sealanya in Turkey, which offer dolphin swimming experiences and shows, while Baan Chang tours in Koh Samui, Thailand which provides elephant rides will also be axed.
Of the 16 attractions affected, 11 involved dolphins and five involved elephants.
Other attractions in India and Cuba will also no longer be sold by Cook.
Five named attractions dropped by the operator were asked for comment by The Sunday Times but did not respond.
Thomas Cook group chief executive Peter Fankhauser said: “Our industry has not changed fast enough. By taking these attractions off sale, we are sending a message that we won’t accept anything less than full compliance with the welfare standards our customers would expect.”
The decision has been welcomed by animal welfare groups who have long campaigned against captive animal tourism.
The charity Whale and Dolphin Conservation said: “We are delighted Thomas Cook appears to be taking this issue seriously.
“Many other travel companies are not, and many facilities continue to flout the Abta animal welfare guidelines.”
An inspection of Ocean World in 2009 carried out by the World Society for the Protection of Animals – now known as World Animal Protection – found cases of dolphins being held alone in a shallow tank for 30 minutes, surrounded by 20 people, and forced to “hug” and “shake hands” with each tourist in turn, The Sunday Times reports.
The report also alleged that 39% of the attraction’s dolphins were captured from the wild.
In February, Virgin Holidays announced it would no longer sell or promote new shows or experiences featuring whales or dolphins.
The Thai embassy in London said: “It is illegal in Thailand to maltreat elephants and legal charges may be brought against those involved.
“Elephant camps are one means through which elephants can be properly cared for. Without work in tourism, coupled with the banning of logging in protected forest areas in Thailand, elephant owners will have no means to care for their animals, and will resort to street begging.”
