Craig Redmond, Campaigns Director, The Captive Animals' Protection Society, Manchester, UK
Travelling circuses and animal needs
An elephant performs at a circus in the US.
It is sad to hear that another animal circus is visiting Malta this month. But the good news is that it has already faced serious opposition.
The UK charity Captive Animals' Protection Society (CAPS) fully supports the Circus Animal Rights Coalition and its campaigns to discourage people from visiting animal shows. And it is great to hear that the state schools are concerned about the welfare of animals in circuses too. A travelling circus, by its very nature, is incapable of meeting the needs of animals.
This view is backed by animal behaviourists and other scientists such as those from Bristol University here in the UK who this year published a study that found "neither natural environment nor much natural behaviour can be recreated" in a circus.
We don't have the right, or the need, to make animals perform just for our entertainment. Around the world, more people visit only all-human circuses, and countries are increasingly prohibiting animal circuses in recognition of the cruelty involved.
Please support those organisations opposing animal circuses and help achieve an end to this cruelty once and for all.
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Lorraine Vella
Dec 9th 2009, 07:47
@ J Green: if persons want to earn their living by performing in dangerous acts, they have the sense and the power to say yes or no. Unlike animals. They are FORCED to act the way they do. They certainly do not choose to do so.
@ J Farrugia: what about the rights of animals?????
@ S Abela: true, many animals are abused daily, and that is the reason why we (all human beings who care) have to do something so that daily abuse stops once and for all!!!
Isabella Peresso Fiorentinio
Dec 8th 2009, 21:26
That poor elephant in the picture......being forced to perform so abusively. I shudder to think how he was trained to do such a thing.
Come on all you animal lovers - lets all join in thursdays protest - for the love of those animals.
Animal circuses are always cruel, no matter which way some people twist it.
adrian aquilina
Dec 8th 2009, 20:12
Mr abela you can be sure we do not only try to stop circuses with animals..we fight for all you said and more..the belief that we own the planet and non human animals,we are animals too,are 2nd class and we can do what we want with them is what is hurting this world..remember it is animals,birds,sea creatures,insects,plant life,nature that keeps you alive,and i dont mean as food but to breath,to keep nature going..
non human animals were here thousands of years before we evolved into humans and they probably wish we were gone again as we cause the problems.80% of large sea creatures are extinct thanks to us..everyday a species becomes extinct.. some say animal lovers dont like humans but the lack of compassion for animals breeds lack of compassion for everything.animal lovers care more about human and non humans..
Malcolm Borg
Dec 8th 2009, 17:14
"neither natural environment nor much natural behaviour can be recreated"...
@Animal circuses and those people who bring these circuses to our islands....prove otherwise or you can say that the circus involves animal cruelty.
salvu abela
Dec 8th 2009, 15:29
The whole truth is like this, every living thing is involved in some sort of cruelty but some people only pionts to what only suits them best especially if there is money involved,take for example the human being he is always told what to do by higher authorities even to go and fight other people`s war ( soldiers),work and pay taxes,ordered where to and not to smoke , and for the animals, training horses for racing,parades,jumping ,polo, dogs,training them to get hunting game and especially in UK to go fox-hunting (a very cruel sensiless sport),in Spain bull-fighting, aren`t these all cruelties put upon God`s living things by human beings or only circuses are the bad things.
david agius
Dec 8th 2009, 14:10
It is so sad that humans have so many ways of entertaining themseves that they can't avoid this type of entertainment . Their children only laugh and enjoy themselves for two hours or so a year when the circus comes,but these animals go through sometimes painful and strenous training all year round in preparation for these shows.they are also locked up in cages all year round except for a few hours every day. Is this what we want to teach our children. Remember.We must not do unto others what we do not want others to do to us and our children. And please. Do not tell me they are only animals.In this day and age we have learned that they have feelings too.Man's greed has no limit.
J Farrugia
Dec 8th 2009, 14:02
we dont need no foreigners to tell us what to do. You enjoy you rights, let us enjoy our rights to see an animal circus.
Robert Callus
Dec 8th 2009, 13:03
Thanks for your support Mr Redmond.
Pictures like this make me sick. Is that an elephant? Does education entail telling our children that's an elephant? It isn't. It's a slave forced to perform being an idiot. Ever seen an elephant behave like this on National Geographic or Discovery Channel? Of course not!
All animal lovers please join us next Thursday at 6.00 PM At Freedom Square to peacefully show our dissent towards this cruelty.
Thanks
James Green
Dec 8th 2009, 12:58
The nanny state will eventually ban trapeeze artists, knive throwers and fire eaters as their acts would be deemed too dangerous to perform in public.
All we'll be left with will be the clowns.