Credit: Instagram
Kelly Dodd is speaking out on Instagram after she and her news reporter husband, Rick Leventhal, were met with backlash for riding an elephant in Thailand.
Following the sharing of a video of the 50-year-old Real Housewives of Orange County alum with Rick, 65, on an elephant, Kelly called out judgmental “hypocrites” who slammed her for not properly researching what happens at the sanctuaries in the Asian country.
“I rode Nina like a champ, no saddle necessary! Happy to help the local economy & the elephants are well taken care of ❤️ & this sanctuary will be here with or without us. And yes it was very cool but definitely one and done,” Kelly wrote in the caption of a December 8 video.
Moments later, Kelly was met with a slew of comments from people who mentioned the alleged abuse elephants go through at the sanctuaries after being ripped away from their mothers, and the physical harm they are believed to sustain as a result of riders.
“Poor elephants … And Rick, you can tell your friend I do not wear leather or eat meat. I don’t exploit innocent elephants either,” one person wrote.
“No..just no,” said another.
“What’s fun for you is years of torture for these beautiful animals. Really thought you would know this … Please look at what you’re supporting,” a third advised.
“Real sanctuaries do not let people ride the elephants. They are lying to you!” someone else declared.
Another person told Kelly it was a “gross look” and slammed her as “unbelievable.”
“Shame on you for not doing any research on proper and legit sanctuaries. This is torture for these poor elephants,” someone else stated.
Amid the backlash, Kelly returned to Instagram with another video.
“For all those hypocrites passing [judgment] on a couple tourists, take a look in the mirror first. When you point a finger, you have 3 pointing back at you,” she captioned the clip.
And in the video, she said, “I’m getting a lot of hate because we rode an elephant. I was in a sanctuary. We’re in Thailand. When in Rome, you do tourist things. I didn’t know anything about what goes on. They said it was a sanctuary that was free from poachers. I don’t know. But people are so judgmental, quick to judge us on, ‘How dare you?’”
“Do you eat meat? Do you wear leather? Do you wear leather on your shoes? What’s the difference between riding a horse?” Kelly wondered as Rick confirmed they would not be “riding an elephant ever again.”
“I would never actually ever do it again. It was the most uncomfortable ride ever,” Kelly agreed.
“But we also contributed to the local economy,” he replied.
Kelly Dodd appeared on The Real Housewives of Orange County from season 11 through season 15.