# "Scratch an Elephant" song

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scratch-an-elephant-song/179760>\
**Category:** Cafe Society\
**Created:** [June 5, 2003, 3:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scratch-an-elephant-song/179760 "2003-06-05T03:21:43Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 4\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\
**Post date:** [June 5, 2003, 3:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scratch-an-elephant-song/179760/1 "2003-06-05T03:21:43Z")

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The New York lottery is currently running a series of tickets with an elephant theme. To promote them they have a radio commercial featuring a song about scratching an elephant. The song is basically a child’s folk song, in a “Puff the Magic Dragon” style, sung by an unidentified group.

Is this an existing song that the NY lottery is using for their campaign or is it a new song they commissioned for the ads?

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**Author:** ![Wolfian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/7ea924/32.png) [@Wolfian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wolfian)\
**Post date:** [June 5, 2003, 4:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scratch-an-elephant-song/179760/2 "2003-06-05T04:45:35Z")

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I don’t know, but now the damn song is in my head again. Gah! I moved out of the state to avoid it!

_Elephant ain’t got no fingernails…_

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**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\
**Post date:** [June 5, 2003, 4:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scratch-an-elephant-song/179760/3 "2003-06-05T04:50:24Z")

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_…And if they did they’d surely break them  
So scratch an elephant  
Scratch an elephant  
And you might make a friend or two_

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**Author:** ![mobo85](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b19c9b/32.png) [@mobo85](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mobo85)\
**Post date:** [June 5, 2003, 8:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scratch-an-elephant-song/179760/4 "2003-06-05T20:29:08Z")

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It’s probably commisioned for the ads (it also appears in their TV spots), based on the line “Scratch an elephant and you might win a million, too.”