Saturday, 11 January 2014

1000 Flowers for the Planet - #94 Discourage Circus Animals

1000 Flowers for the Planet - #94 Discourage Circus Animals

Guest Writer:
Animals kept at the circus are trained to do unnatural things. A monkey wasn’t born to ride a bicycle. Horses weren’t made to do tricks. Elephants certainly weren’t created to perform. Animals are not here on earth for our entertainment, and we should not force them to become objects of our pleasure. We should find joy in their natural behaviours. In the cuteness of a pair of otters holding hands while they sleep so that they don’t drift apart in the water – not in an animal being beaten into submission to perform tricks to keep us amused for half an hour.
Elephants are huge animals. It’s not right that they should be made to remain in confined areas. They can cover distances of up to 80km in a day when in their natural environment. Within a circus, I’m sure they’d be lucky to cover 2km in a day. This would lead to boredom, and if alone, loneliness. These creatures, the monkeys, tigers, horses, elephants – all of them – are meant to be out in the wild, finding life partners and having families.

There’s also the danger of an elephant snapping. There have been many cases of circus elephants finally rebelling against their trainers when they’ve had enough abuse, and they have killed spectators and then been killed themselves. None of this is acceptable, and it is COMPLETELY avoidable if we just leave all of these animals where they belong – in their native countries, out in the wild.

There are many amazing circuses that use only manpower! Cirque du Soleil are an incredible team of performers, and I can tell you I would much rather marvel at their abilities than watch a tortured animal do unnatural things.

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