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Animal Circuses - A Life of Suffering

History

Campaigning against the abuse of animals in circuses has always been a core element of Freedom for Animals’ mission. When Irene Heaton founded the Captive Animals’ Protection Society in 1957, later to become Freedom for Animals, a key focus was liberating animals from circuses. The 1950s and 60s was an era in which UK circuses toured with all manner of animals including elephants, lions, horses, polar bears, camels, sea lions, and chimpanzees.

Victory

After decades of tireless campaigning, Freedom for Animals achieved a huge step forward in May 2018 when a long-fought ban on using wild animals in travelling circuses came into force in Scotland. England and Wales followed in 2020, and today there are no wild animals performing in UK circuses. However, our work is far from over.

Today

Domestic animals are still exploited in UK circuses. Acts using horses, dogs, and birds travel for months on end every year, exposing animals to crowds, loud noises, and bright lights in performances that they are forced to endure often multiple times per day. It is a gruelling schedule and wholly unnecessary in a modern, civilised world.

Cruel Training Methods and Unnatural Tricks

Bullhooks, whips and sticks are all tools of the trade that have been used to train circus animals. These painful methods cause animals to suffer and break their spirit. A trainer may try to hide their tools from the watching crowd. But there is no denying it. Sadly pain and submission are all part of the show. Domesticated animals such as horses are forced to carry numerous people on their backs and rear up on their hind legs. Animals do not choose to perform these tricks - they perform them from fear.

Travel and Temporary Accommodation

Circuses travel for months at a time, meaning that animals are kept in temporary housing which cannot meet their most basic welfare needs. Confined regularly to small compartments in vans and trailers to travel, and kept in makeshift tents on site, circus animals are denied the freedom to act on their natural instincts. Animals trapped in these enclosures in circuses have been seen pacing, rocking, swaying - these stressed behaviours are often seen in animals in captivity.

Exposing Cruelty

As if this suffering isn’t bad enough, our investigations into circuses have exposed the mistreatment of animals behind the scenes - findings that are backed up by those of our colleagues. Peter Jolly’s Circus still tours today with horses, despite having been found in 2016 to keep animals in appalling conditions including severe overcrowding, extended periods of tethering, and torment and abuse by staff. Until all animal use is banned in circuses animals will not be safe from this industry, and our work must continue.

What is Freedom for Animals Doing?

We support protests at circuses spreading the word about cruel animal circuses.

We educate the public about animal circuses by speaking up for animals in the media, online and in person.

We lobby the government and councils to ban animal circuses.

We investigate and expose animal circuses ensuring we have evidence to speak up for animals.

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