Circuses

Most circuses claim to treat their animals well, and train them without using harsh methods. This probably does apply to animals such as performing dogs and horses, but when it comes to wilder animals like tigers and elephants the reality is often quite different. For example, when one goes to see lions in a circus act, the trainer usually has a whip and pointed pole to keep the lions away if they seem agressive. The only way the lions will know to keep back when the whip or stick is raised is if they've been trained to be afraid of it. I don't think this is an acceptable way of getting a creature to do what you want.

This month, a Sri-Lankan circus elephant, Anne, was moved to Longleat safari park in Wiltshire, after her owners were prosecuted with not seeing to her needs and repeatedly allowing for her to be beaten. These are offences under the 2006 Animal Welfare Act. The arthritic fifty-eight year-old pachyderm had been in the Bobby Roberts Super Circus since the 1950s. (I got this information from here.) Elephants are made learn tricks by being prodded with sharp rods and shocked with electric currents as babies.

As circuses are constantly on the move, the animals are crammed into trailers and boxcars for hours on end. It's not quite as bad for animals like horses dogs as they can be let out and allowed to move around in fields once the circus' destination has been reached. However, primates, large felines and elephants, who are potentially dangerous to performers and passers-by, are never allowed to wander around ouside. In the wild these animals would travel many miles daily, running free whenever and wherever they want to. As a result, these captive animals tend to be overweight and unfit due to lack of exercise.

In my opinion, a circus is much more enjoyable when it only involves human performers, such as Cirque du Soleil, because it means I'm not worrying about the welfare of the animals. Animal-friendly circuses are a much better option and are becoming more popular nowadays, so perhaps circuses with animals won't be around much longer.

The photo of the baby elephant is featured here and I copied it from here.

Fur

Many people see fur as a fashion statement, something that suggests wealth. However, I see fur as a disgraceful alternative to synthetic materials, and makes me feel sick.

It was all very well and good back in historical times when the plastics used to make faux (fake) fur hadn't yet been discovered and fur was essential for warmth. Nowadays I find it shocking that animals are murdered so humans can wear their skin as a symbol of class. I don't have a such problem with leather, as the meat of the cow will be used as food, and I'm no vegetarian. But when an animal is cruelly killed for just its fur it's just wrong! Can you imagine the outrage and disgust there would be if a fox killed a human and then proceeded to wear its skin as a collar? There would be chaos, and the fox would undoubtedly be put down.

Fur companies use horrifying methods to trap and kill the animals. They are often caught in a steel-jaw trap, which snaps shut on the animal's limbs, trapping them. The animal sometimes tries to gnaw off its own leg in its struggle to escape. This struggle can go on for hours, until the person who set the trap comes along, or the animal dies of shock or exhaustion. Water-traps catch the animal and cause it to drown agonisingly slowly.

On fur farms, such as in China, hundreds of animals are bred and suffer in horrendous conditions before being killed for their fur. They're often hideously killed by gas and electric shocks so the fur isn't damaged in the process. There is no law that prevents these cruel methods, so it is legal to be brutal to and torment the poor creatures.

I hope that the law will be changed because of protests against these things, and animal welfare will improve greatly due to this.

SeaWorld - Killer Whales

SeaWorld has recently been sued by the animal rights organisation PETA (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals). They were sued because their treatment of five whales (Corky, Katina, Ulises, Tilikum and Kasatka) apparently violates the rights of killer whales  in captivity stated in the US Constitution. There are nineteen orca whales held in the three SeaWorld centres, and these five are from SeaWorlds San Diego and Orlando.

Ingrid Newkirk, president of PETA, stated "All five of these orcas were violently seized from the ocean and taken from their families as babies." Due to this treatment the whales can be violent towards trainers, and despite the many incidents, including the death of trainer Dawn Brancheau, the whales are still kept in captivity for the entertainment of humans.

Wild animals of this size should not be kept in captivity, they should be allowed to roam free in open waters, as they are meant to. I feel that is always better to see animals enjoying themselves in their natural habitats, rather than in a display cage or tank.

I got the photo from here.