Ensayos

CIRCUSES
The image that many people have of the circus is of a spectacular and wondrous world full of colour, music, glitter, fun and excitement – one where trapeze artists, lion tamers and clowns perform amazing acts to delight the audience. Harmless family entertainment, you might say? However, there is another side to the world of the circus that you are not supposed to see.

Most peoplewho go to a circus with performing animals are unaware that, behind the scenes, there is a sad story of cruelty and suffering.
BORN FREE FOUNDATION

The circus is no place for animals
Fortunately, after years of campaigning in the UK, wild animals such as lions, tigers, elephants and bears are rarely used. However, the Great British Circus has performing elephants, lions, tigers and otheranimals, and there are other circuses in the UK that use animals (including zebras, camels, llamas, reindeer, dogs, horses and even budgerigars). The animals are often dressed up in ridiculous costumes whilst being forced to perform degrading tricks that are completely unnatural to them. What on earth is entertaining about that? Circus animals spend most of the year in transit from one location toanother, confined to small wagons. When they are not performing in the ring, they are kept inside tiny cages or enclosures, or in the vehicles in which they are transported. Some animals spend more than 95% of their time confined or tethered.

Cruelty and ignorance
To make animals carry out acts that are totaly unnatural to them (for example, horses being forced to walk on their hind legs, and lionsjumping through hoops of fire), they are often trained by being beaten or frightened into submission, or by being deprived of food. This training takes place behind closed doors and, as with other industries that use animals, undercover investigations into the circus trade bring to light disturbing evidence of terrible cruelty. This includes trainers hitting the animals with sharp, pointed hooksand repeatedly shouting at them as they cower in terror.

Until The Great British Circus imported three elephants in 2009, Anne was the last UK circus elephant. She has been with the Bobby Roberts Super Circus since being taken from the forests of Sri Lanka at the age of five years. Until 2001 Anne at least had the company of other elephants, but has been alone since her companions, Beverley andJanie, died. Her ‘owner’ refused to let her retire to a sanctuary, despite the fact that she is suffering from arthritis. At her grand age, Annie should not be transported all over the country just for people’s entertainment. Annie has suffered a lifetime of captivity, with no freedom or companions, and will die miserable and alone.
CAPS

In 1999, the owner of one of the most famous Britishcircuses, Mary Chipperfield, was convicted on 12 counts of causing unnecessary suffering to an 18-month-old chimpanzee called Trudy. Chipperfield beat Trudy with a riding crop and forced her to spend up to 14 hours a day in a cage without toys or any other sort of entertainment or stimulation. Mary Chipperfield was fined £7,500, but was not banned from keeping animals.

ANIMAL AID INFORMATIONSHEET

ANIMAL AID INFORMATION SHEET

CAPS

The government announced in 2006 that the Animal Welfare Act would ban the use of some animals in circuses from 2008. However, the government backtracked and decided not to introduce a ban under the Animal Welfare Act when it came into force. The Animal Welfare Act does nothing to change the conditions in which the animals have to travel or live.Circuses don’t need to be licensed and there are no circus inspectors. Individual animal trainers need to be registered, but it’s pointless; they basically fill in a form to say they train animals - no inspection or qualification is needed.

The great circus tradition...
Some people say that circuses are part of our traditional heritage and that ‘real’ circuses must have animals. The truth is that...