Yes. Everyone is assuming the elephant is extremely uncomfortable.

how do you know? Just because paint may not be comfortable for people (yet people do it all the time) how do you know it doesn't feel good to the elephant. It could feel like a mud bath. You don't know. You are just assuming the worst.

Hardly abuse.

Whipping it, hitting it, kicking it, pinching it, not feeding it. THESE are examples of abuse. painting an elephant for a couple of hours is not.