Life in Circus
"Sink that hook into ‘em ... when you hear that screaming then you know you got their attention. … "-Elephant Trainer for a circus
The above is an authentic quote from a circus elephant trainer caught on tape.
Circuses are supposed to be for fun, children love them. But this “fun” is at a high price
when there are animals involved.
The life of a circus animal
Living conditions: Most animals used in the circus are meant to
live in the wild. Instead of their natural habitats where they would
roam free and live on their natural instincts, they are forced to live
and travel in cramped quarters far smaller than their habitats in the
wild. They are often forced to eat, sleep and even defecate in the same
place. Circuses travel to many locations and water is limited in some
locations, bathing and cleaning the animals living quarters is given low
priority where water is limited. Unfortunately, this limitation extends
to their drinking water as well.
Elephants are kept with their feet chained down for long periods of
time. Baby elephants are prematurely removed from their mothers for the
purpose of early training. They are tied with ropes, which leads to rope
burn.
Many circuses give no consideration to climate and the animals are
exposed to extreme heat or cold.
In addition, their diets do not consist of what they would naturally and
they are sometimes underfed in the interest of getting an ideal
performance. Disease is common among circus animals.
Veterinarians qualified to treat exotic animals are not always present
and circus animals frequently suffer inadequate veterinary care.
Training: Ever wonder how circuses manage to get the animals to
perform so well? Animals do not perform the acts you see in the circus
naturally. They have to be trained, often by extreme methods. They are
traumatized in to obeying their human ‘trainers” commands.
Bull hooks are often driven in to the tender areas of an elephant’s body
to make it cooperate. Electric shock, whips, baseball bats and pipes
are also among the methods used to force the animals to cooperate in
training. Some animals are kept muzzled to subdue them and discourage
them from defending themselves if they feel threatened. Some animals are
drugged to make them manageable and some have their teeth removed. Some
bears have had their paws burned to force them to stand on their hind
legs.
Mental distress: the combination of the above circumstances and
other factors lead to mental distress in circus animals. There have been
many cases of animals attacking humans and escaping.
Since 1990, attacks by captive big cats have resulted in 46 humans deaths and the killing of 70 big cats
Since 1990, 13 humans have been killed by captive bears. 8 of them were
children. Attacks have also resulted in 26 bears being killed
Since 1990, attacks by captive primates have resulted in 2 humans deaths, 130 human injuries, and the killing of 450 primates.
Since 1990, 57 people have been killed by captive elephants.120 people were injured.
When you think about how they are treated, can you blame them for
attacking? What must they think of humans? They don’t ask for the
miserable lifestyle circus performance subjects them to
“Retirement” for circus animals: As with many other forms of animal
“entertainment”, once the animal can no longer perform, it is not much
value to the circus. They may be permanently caged, sold to a game farm
to be hunted, or sold to a lab.
What you can do
DON’T visit circuses that have animals. There are a number of cruelty
free circuses that only display human acts. For a list of cruelty free
circuses, please visit Circuses that do not use animal acts.
Lawfully protest circuses that contain animal acts. Educate potential
visitors about what really goes on in some circuses. Urge local animal
control and the humane society to carefully monitor the care and
treatment of animals when a circus with animals comes to your area.
Urge lawmakers to ban animal entertainment acts and show your support for those that do.
For more information on circus animal abuse and what you can do to stop it, please see the links below
Circus Watch Abusive animal "trainers".
caught on tape.
Circuses.com Detailed site on circus animal abuse
Animals in Entertainment PETA's Animals in Entertainment Fact sheet.
http://www.starbreezes.com/11/circusabuse.html
