Open mike: Has the circus had its day?

Martin writes:

"For many of us, a circus forms a happy part of a childhood memory.

Over recent years in particular, however, both groups and individuals that are concerned about animals in captivity have continued to express their concerns about the continuing existence of circuses, arguing that they are wrong.

DNA Entertainment plans to hold shows in April entitled ‘Animal Extravaganza’, and their advertisements for the show have pictures of tigers and elephants on them.

The SPCA said they have concerns about the welfare of the animals in the circus, adding that the group feels it is inhumane to keep animals such as elephants, dogs and white tigers locked up in small cages for the majority of their lives. In addition, the SPCA chairman and veterinary surgeon said circuses serve no purpose.

There are two issues here; firstly, that keeping animals in cages is inhumane in any event and, secondly, the concern for animal welfare generally.

Is the SPCA right and should it make such “assumption” as to welfare without proof? Is it time that circuses came to an end in any event because, in the eyes of many, they are outmoded forms of entertainment?

My view on both is 'yes'."

Comments

[Triggerfish on 10.03.06 at 10:19]

Interesting essay on the dreadful conditions endured by animals in many small-time travelling circuses. It's by Pamelyn Ferdin, a former child star who has long been an outspoken animal rights activist in the US ... Altho' definitely on the militant end of the animal rights spectrum, I can't find much to fault (or much strident language) in this piece.

The Circus Is In Town, And the Animals are
DYING to Entertain You
By Pamelyn Ferdin

"The Circus is Coming to Town" is a saying that used to bring excitement to small town city dwellers, but now with the knowledge of what really goes on "behind the Big Top", people are thinking twice. Instead of paying money to see the exploitation of animals in circuses, people are choosing "animal free" circuses like Cirque du Soleil and many others who are saying "NO" to the use of exotic animals in traveling circuses. You see, there's another side to the story of animals in the circus I'd like to address - the animal welfare problem. Everyday life for animals on the road is a very disturbing part of the circus picture.

Consider the elephants. Circuses typically confine these animals with a pair of heavy leg chains front and rear, diagonally opposite. An elephant thus chained cannot even turn in a circle. It's not unusual for these animals to live in double leg chains all night and day except during performances and when they are on public "display". Some "lucky" elephants get to spend some time in a small electrified corral, but even those elephants may spend 10 hours or more a day in double leg chains. Aggressive male elephants may have their head and trunk movements restrained with additional chains. Most of us would be outraged to see a dog tethered in that manner. Yet a wild elephant (or even one who is born into captivity), has an immense instinctive need to roam, take mud baths and interact with their own social community.

In nature, elephants sleep only four hours a night and move great distances daily. The confinement of circus animals is meant to prevent incidents of aggression. But the frustration, boredom and loneliness of such confinement is instead, a likely additive to the animals' motivation for aggression. When I think about the effects of rampaging elephants' (as has happened in cities world wide) I wonder why traveling animal acts have been tolerated for as long as they have. A visit behind the scenes of traveling circuses can be an eye-opener. One sees tigers kept in cages equivalent to what an airline carrier would be for domestic cats (where the tigers can't even turn around let alone express their natural behaviors), hippos in tiny containers with scarcely 6 inches of water, and bears with muzzles around their mouths, while harnessed onto the backs of horses. I've even watched keepers practicing such inappropriate care techniques as purposely feeding moldy bread to "aid digestion." I've heard trainers describe the aberrant repetitive movements (such as pacing and rocking) often seen in circus animals as a sign of contentment, when in reality it's the symptoms of complete boredom and isolation in a totally unnatural environment. Many keepers may truly care for the animals, but they sorely lack zoological or behavioral education or training. Then there are caretakers who don't really care or, worse yet, go out of their way to abuse animals.

The opportunity to dominate the large land mammals like elephants and tigers seems to attract violent behavior. One technique used to dominate an elephant is to wet him down and then repeatedly administer 110-volt shocks to send the animal to its knees. Not only does this torture and terrify the animal, it may prematurely age its brain. Another domination method has been to strike an elephant repeatedly in their most sensitive areas with an item called an "elephant or bull hook."The elephant "handlers" do this in order to get elephants, who weigh thousands of pounds, to do tricks which are difficult and completely unnatural for them to do. Some circuses say that they train their animals with "hugs" and the "reward system"; this is simply false propaganda meant to soothe an uneducated public.

If we want this world to be a more peaceful and less violent place, if we want to start teaching young children to have compassion and respect for those beings with whom we share the planet yet who are different from us, then we must not take them to places that show these magnificent animals doing stupid and unnatural tricks in ridiculous costumes. This teaches nothing to our children about these animal's lives or who they truly are and should be.

Please teach your children compassion, not cruelty and choose circuses that have the jugglers, clowns, cotton candy and acrobats, but do not contain the animal suffering of those circuses who use animals.

[smith on 10.03.06 at 10:28]

"The elephant in question, that killed its trainer, was an African elephant, if I'm not mistaken."

Oh, well, then it's OK.

"It just bugs me when I hear these ill-informed treehuggers talking about how these animals should be released into the wild,"

Bugs me when some moron defends animal cruelty.

[Mobylette on 10.03.06 at 10:40]

Yeah - bugger McCartney.

Not only did he do 'I Am The Waitress' & 'Your Mother Should Go', but he also sang 'Rocky Racoon' about a bloody rat with a gun!

Some animal rights activist!

[Uncle Elvis on 10.03.06 at 10:40]

Trigger,

And I agree that anyone that uses those methods should be shut down.

However, that is only SOME of the circuses. Not all.

Smith,

Did you actually read my posts? I thought I explained myself pretty well, regarding African and Indian elephants.

However, there is an addendum. In researching this, I came across the story of an Indian elephant that attacked its trainer after being abused for ages. This may have been what you were talking about, I don't know. If it was, I say: Good on the elephant.

Regarding your second bit, there...
Again, read my posts. I am in no way defending animal cruelty. Nor am I a moron, thank you.
I actually decried animal cruelty a few times.
What I WAS trying to say is that we shouldn't be knee-jerk about banning an entire industry because of a few dickheads who abuse animals.

Thanks for cherry picking and trying to twist my intentions.

[Mobylette on 10.03.06 at 10:47]

.......and lets not forget 'Bungalow Bill' (what did you kill?).

[YR5 on 10.03.06 at 10:54]

Mobylette - I agree about Paul - all that pollution he made with his yellow submarine. I would go and burn all my beatles albums right now if I was not trying to cut down on greenhouse gases.

[Mobylette on 10.03.06 at 10:55]

Don't get me started about 'Maxwell's Silver Hammer'.

[Mobylette on 10.03.06 at 11:00]

.....and he didn't seem to bother too much about animal rights when he sang that awful song about.......hard day's night and I've been working like a dog.

He and that sh*t stirring amputee should hop it!

[SmokingGun on 10.03.06 at 11:00]

"And how can you not love animals? there so cute and fuzzy like rabbits and kittens." - Shark

I love rabbits. Taste just like chicken. And it's fun to eat a little...... never mind.

[YR5 on 10.03.06 at 11:10]

Smoking gun, my neighbour is from South Africa and regularly eats Biltong (like beef jerky but made from springbok) and zebra when he can get it (tastes a lot like beef but stronger). He is after some crocodile steaks at the moment but is having difficulty. Although it is pretty common in SA and apparently tastes wonderful, the attitude over here (UK) is as if he were barbaric killing poor little crocodiles, as if they were endangered. They are food in SA. Simple.

[Mobylette on 10.03.06 at 11:23]

....he even does a song about a circus on 'Sgt Rutters Only Darts Club'.

....and of course Henry the horse dances the waltz.....

Where was he for animal rights then?

[P.E.T.A. on 10.03.06 at 11:29]

I am not a vegatarian but I try not to eat intelligent animals
Posted by al-ghorab on 09.03.06 at 17:46

Does this mean unintelligent humans are on the menu? Soylent Green is People!!!

[SmokingGun on 10.03.06 at 11:35]

YR5 - as they are in Florida. Did you hear about the guy who took his dog to Florida last week. He threw a stick into a lake for the dog to fetch. As soon as Fido jumped in a croc ate him. Dumb owner, poor dog. Probably didn't know what bit him though.

In Bermuda there used to be a bunch of guys who would get together and cook up the strangest meat they could find. Old lions from zoos etc. To be honest, if someone says it tastes like chicken then I say just give me chicken.

[Bill Cook on 10.03.06 at 11:42]

Did not see your post referring to both African and Asian Elephants but perhaps you pointed out that African Elephants cannot be trained like Asian Elephants.

Elephants in Asia were usedto work in logging camps etc. the African Elephant is much bigger but is not domecticated in that way.

Dont know much about the McCartneys and am not a Beatle fan but both are Vegans I think and Linda may have had her leg amputated unlike that poster who obviously had his brain amputated !!

[Mobylette on 10.03.06 at 11:52]

Linda is dead. Its the new one who is missing a leg. She lost it in a hit and run accident.

My posts were meant to show the lighter side of this issue, but you obviously didn't see the funny side - sorry

[ace on 10.03.06 at 11:54]

"Ace, as far as I know, boar tastes better'n pig, but that could be a factor of stress hormones in the system when they die. I do know that beef that has been slaughtered in one of the "Conveyer Belt"-type of abbatior (great word, that...) tastes nowhere near as good as beef from an animal that has been slaughtered a little more gently."

Sorry Elvis, but you have me somewhat confused.

Boar tastes better because it is "stressed out" but they are killed more gently than if they had been in a slaughter house? Surely evidence of "stress hormones" signify a somewhat non-gentle means of ending their lives?

Regardless, can't we stress out the beef & pigs on the conveyor belt? You know...someone on the line going "BOO" when the animals aren't looking and scaring them. Or he/she could wave a pointy stick at them...something?

[Uncle Elvis on 10.03.06 at 11:58]

Biltong is the BOMB! Divine! Agh! I can't explain how good it is!

I'm not terribly fond of some of the game biltong, although eland is to DIE for!

One of my dietary rules, based solely on taste, is that I try to stay away from carnivores. Crocodile, lion, fish, dog... not so pleasant to me.

Mobylette,
Mr. Cook is right. That was out of line.

[Uncle Elvis on 10.03.06 at 12:12]

ace, that was my bad. I was referring to stress hormones in piggies, not boars. I'm not sure if you've ever seen a slaughterhouse... no, abbatior. I like the word better!... but most of them are pretty gruesome places and the manner of death is rather stressful, hanging from a hook through your leg for several minutes. Hunting, however, if done right, can be a relatively painless and quick, not giving time for the stress hormones to be released.

Sorry about my complete inability to put that into a cohesive sentence the first time! *grin*

[Mobylette on 10.03.06 at 12:24]

Time to lighten up Elvis.

Just having a giggle 'grin'

:-)

[silencedogood on 10.03.06 at 12:51]

Elvis, you are starting to sound like a different rocker--Ted Nugent. :)

[ace on 10.03.06 at 13:01]

"I'm not sure if you've ever seen a slaughterhouse... no, abbatior. I like the word better!... but most of them are pretty gruesome places and the manner of death is rather stressful, hanging from a hook through your leg for several minutes."

That sure does sound stressful.

Thanks for clarifying.

I've never been to one of those there abbatior thingies. No desire to go either. I like my meat wrapped up in white paper or in a tray with a meat-maxi-pad underneath it to catch any excess "juice". I don't want to know how it got there.

[SmokingGun on 10.03.06 at 13:10]

Actually it's not quite as barbaric as veggie-mate makes out. The animals are put to sleep in a gas chamber before they are hung, drawn and quartered. Basically they wake up dead.

[Uncle Elvis on 10.03.06 at 13:10]

LOL, silenced.

Hey, he may be a whacko, but at least he eats what he hunts and, while, yes, he loves doing it for the sport of it, it's not just sport for sports sake, y'know?

Add to that, venison stew? MMMMMMMMM! *grin*

[Uncle Elvis on 10.03.06 at 13:29]

Smokes,

That's true for many, but not all.
A large amount of slaughterhouses are kosher (I've heard that 99% of the meat that comes to Bermuda is actually kosher... not the pork, of course, but the beef...)which has its pros and cons.
They value the sharpness of the knife etc, and PETA consider them to be the most humane way of slaughtering (But don't get me started on PETA!) but for safety reasons, the carcass can't touch the blood of another animal (This is standard practice in most slaughterhouses). Because of this, the animal has to be suspended by a hook through its leg. A lot of the time, the animal is stunned or anaesthetized before this, but Jewish law forbids the slaughter and eating of unconscious animals, so they are strung up fully awake. True, some don't hook them, but it is rare, due to it being seriously cost prohibitive.

You killed me with Veggie-mate, though! *grin*
I'm about as vegetarian as... um... a non-vegetarian thing.
Mikey loves steak!

I wasn't denouncing abbatiors (God, I love that word. I should start a death metal band called Abbatoir!)(Oh, wait. I hate death metal.. ne'mind). I was just pointing out other instances of animals suffering that seem to be ok, so as to counterpoint the argument against circuses in general.

Hello, Cleveland! We are...

ABBATIOR!

Definitely a Swedish death-metal cover band.
Sickest version of Dancing Queen you've EVER heard!

[SmokingGun on 10.03.06 at 13:51]

Uncle E - you are correct. Not all slaughter-houses use the method I described. I've been in a couple over the years and the modern day plants are far more humane in handling the killing of animals. Is humane killing an oxymoron?

If you want to see the other extreme just google some of the open air meat markets in places like India. Rivers of blood..... sorry, I hope you've all finished your lunch.

[Uncle Elvis on 10.03.06 at 14:01]

"Rivers of Blood"

Abbatior's critically praised first album!

[Two Cents on 10.03.06 at 14:10]

This is a conversation that you wouldn't want to have over brunch or dinner thats for certain.

Elvis ...RE: Biltong next time bring some back with you, it is great..... "it's like TURBO BEEF JERKY", as a friend of mine once said, and it beats the hell out of a Slim Jim !!

I thought "Rivers of Blood" was Abbatior's 2nd Album, wasn't "As Barbaric as Veggie-Mate" their first #1 Album ??

[al-ghorab on 10.03.06 at 14:12]

Uncle Elvis, even if I would agree that we shouldn't have a 'knee-jerk reaction' to all circuses and have them banned immediately, I still cannot agree with bringing such a circus here to Bermuda. For one thing, think about the logistics of transportation. I would assume, theyt would have to fly them over. They will have to be confined for some time, and have to deal with the stress of lift off/landing. Furthermore, they'll have to become acclimatised to our environment - temperature, humidity, all that jazz. On top of that, how long will they be here for? A week, maybe two? Can we justify such stress simply for a short time period of entertainment? I feel there are too many risks and it does not justify the circus coming, even if it is a responsible circus. On top of that, isn't this similar to bringing that book ship (Logos II?) over? Won't this undermine local entertainment? Also, couldn't this clash with the Ag Show? Abotu the eggs though, yes, battery farms are awful. Fortunately one can get free range eggs from Bermudian farms (Windybank is it?). Due to economics (rent, etc.) I am forced into a virtually vegatarian diet of rice and beans, eggs, cheese and lentils. When I do get some meat (maybe once a month) I go for the organic chicken I can get at the grocers. Figure if I can't get to eat meat regularly, might as well go for the taste of organic. But thats just me.

[Two Cents on 10.03.06 at 14:21]

al-ghorab,

The last time the circus "came to town" the animals came here on a ship, not sure if you remember, but they closed down Front St. on a Sunday afternoon whilst they walked the elephants, horses, etc from the docks upto B.A.A where the circus was held. Don't worry, the lions, tigers, etc were driven to B.A.A in cages on the back of huge flatbed trucks. All the people who didn't want to spend $50-$60 to see the Circus came out and took pictures & video.

[observor on 10.03.06 at 14:22]

al-ghorab

I believe the animals will be coming in an ark ... two by two ....

[al-ghorab on 10.03.06 at 14:26]

Yes, but I understand the company hasn't even been able to conform whic circus is involved yet. Either they are keeping mum or they haven't finalised the deal yet. To get the animals and equipment here in time they would have to get everything organised ASAP and get to the ships real quick. There is a lot of logistics involved in all of this, not to mention vet checks and customs papers, so if they don't get their act together soon they will have to rely on air travel - especially as the weather can be unpredictable and has already cancelled some shipments here, from what I understand.

[al-ghorab on 10.03.06 at 14:27]

Hope they have better radar and radio than ravens and doves this time though.

[SmokingGun on 10.03.06 at 14:33]

BTW what's the BIU's take on this? Surely we've got enough animals on the island that can be paraded around in chains. After all, they've proven they can do some pretty stupid stunts.

[Uncle Elvis on 10.03.06 at 14:36]

2¢, I got some at home. Remind me and I'll bring some to lunch, when we have it.

And...
There are two trains of thought on that album. Since it was self released on their own label, along with their self produced single "Hung, Drawn and Quartered", "Rivers of Blood" was their first release by a major label, Meat Maxi-Pad Records.

Ok... I'll stop.

al, I can see your point on bringing them to Bermuda. I would, however, point out equestrianism, and how they have to ship and truck horses for sometimes a significant amount of time for a three-day event. Many times much farther than from the States to Bermuda. The Olympics, for example.
Having said that, I see your point and wouldn't be disappointed if this was stopped on these grounds.
"On top of that, isn't this similar to bringing that book ship (Logos II?) over? Won't this undermine local entertainment?"
I see your point, but don't see how it fits. Now, if we had a circus of our own, or something like it, I'd agree. We don't, though. Entertainment is dead in Bermuda. Unless the elephants and tigers can play "Lady in Red" and "Yellowbird" on a toy guitar with a Casio keyboard playing beatbox in the background at the airport, there's no real crossover.

Re: Your dietary habits. I'd love it if we could get the food-producing industry to go free-range, but I don't really see that happening.
Personally, I like meat too much to give it up (although, like you, I don't eat a tonne of it, due to monetary reasons), but I admire you for both supporting local farmers and producers and for supporting the free-range/organic farming movement.

[ice_cube on 10.03.06 at 15:45]

We should bring in some lions tigers and bears for ourselves. Let a local or importee become the trainers. Put um on one of the surrounding little islands and make an adventure park out of it.

Panda steaks tonight with organic corn mmm

[al-ghorab on 10.03.06 at 17:34]

The comparison with Logos II was more tongue in cheek than anything else. Though arguably the Aquarium, Cablevision and Leisure Time might want to put up a fight.