Circus Animals Abuse

Animal Cruelty; Animals used for entertainment is a form of abuse

“Animal Entertainment” refers to any animals used to act, perform, or fight for the enjoyment of humans. zoos, circuses, and bullfighting are all examples of animals used for entertainment. While many applaud these firms for putting on a spectacular show, many others argue that the animals are treated unfair. All of these animals are taken out of their natural environment and forced to perform acts not typically in their behavioral range. If one pays close attention at the circus, for example, it is visible how these animals are treated. Trainers threaten tigers with a whip and often hit elephants with metal on their legs. These techniques are inhumane and best explain why animals should not be used for entertainment. The use of animals for entertainment is a form of animal abuse because of the way the

industry trains, cares, and keeps the animals in captivity
People adore watching elephants at the circus balance on balls; orca whales, at seaworld, doing flips. Yet people fail to realize what happens after the show. When the animals are forced to live in a limited amount of space. When the show is over the animals are forced back into box shaped carts; what is now known as their home. The animals living in the circuses suffer tremendously during these journeys. According to “rubber-stamping cruelty” the cages are constructed of chain-link fencing that have concrete floors… There are no requirements for providing animals with space separate from their living quarters so that they can exercise or relieve themselves. The environment these animals are forced to live in are different from the wild. Once the animals are taken from their homes they spend more than twenty-three hours per day in chains... Animals are also exposed to extreme temperatures, and left to stand in their own waste for hours at a time (Merritt,7). This exposure to extreme temperatures can cause the animals to get agitated.
Seaworld is known for their famous shamu show, one ocean. It is a killer whale act that they have been doing for years now. In 1983 a male killer whale was captured in the North Atlantic. At two years of age, he was already 11.5 feet long. The trainers named him Tilikum. SeaWorld store the whales, in what they called, a module. It was twenty feet across and probably thirty feet deep. Seaworld forced all the whales to live in this area together. Tilikum rarely spent time with the other whales only spent time with the females for breeding purposes (blackfish). This frustrated the orcas because in the ocean there was a lot of open space where they could swim around with their family. In captivity the orcas have little to no space and get torn apart from their family.
Animal on animal tension begins to form when animals are in a small proximity for too long. As frustration builds up between the animals they begin to take that anger out on eachother. According to the documentary blackfish a result of throwing the orcas in with other whales they have not grown up with is hyper aggression. Another cause of animal on animal tension is to deprive the animals of food. A lot of violence and killing start to occur that you would never see in the wild. when the trainers let the orcas out of the modules there would be new teeth rakes; sometimes blood on the orcas backs. Unfortunately for the animals that get hurt while fighting have to suffer because medical help is not provided.
Performance animals are generally denied everything a firm is suppose to offer. Circuses do not provide proper veterinary care for the animals they own or lease (Evans,2). It cost money to have a veterinarian travel with the circus. Smaller and poorer circuses can not even provide animals with adequate water and food. So of course the firm will not be able to afford a traveling veterinarian. Animals in circuses suffer horribly under deplorable conditions. They are forced to live in dirty, crowded quarters; are not provided with consistent veterinary care (many circuses don't travel with veterinarians) (Merritt 1). There are multiple ways the performance animals could get sick on the road. So when they are not provided with the proper care the firm is shortening the animal's life span. Seaworld employees lie about the life span of the whales they keep in captivity. Just because the orcas Seaworld keep in captivity die young they like to say all orcas die young. Seaworld claims all orca whales only live twenty to thirty years. Which is false, people knew by 1980 that orcas could live as long as humans (blackfish).
The AWA stands for the animal welfare act. The AWA applies to all animal carriers and exhibitors. The AWA is suppose to protect the animal’s rights and keep them from getting hurt. The AWA regulations are criticized by animal welfarists as being minimal standards that provide little protection and are poorly enforced (Evans, 16). Animal welfarists fear that exotic animals are not housed, trained, and cared for in a humane manner, particularly at circuses, carnivals, and roadside zoos and parks (Evans, 3). Although the AWA prohibits subjecting animals to “trauma, overheating, excessive cooling, behavioral stress, physical harm and unnecessary discomfort” of animals in circuses and elsewhere; different organizations often disregard the laws (Niedrich, 20). This combination of minimal standards and insufficient oversight permits circuses and traveling wild animal acts to keep wild animals in horrible conditions and still be in agreement with the AWA. Animals are not able to speak up and protect themselves from abuse; another reason why the AWA was formed. So when the AWA does not benefit the animals it loses the purpose. That is why the AWA needs to stricten their laws and enforce them more efficiently. Due to the weak regulations trainers get away with abusing the animals to train them.
The fascinating tricks the animals perform on a day to day basis take a lot of training. These are not tricks the animals can learn in a couple of hours. To master a trick it takes persistence from the animal and patience from the trainer. Most of the trainers do not have the patience leading them to use cruel and abusive methods. Bullhooks, whips, and electric prods are some of the harmful tools trainers use. Despite years of denials, Kenneth Feld has now admitted under oath that his trainers routinely "correct" elephants by hitting them with bullhooks, whipping them, and on occasion using electric prods. He even admitted to witnessing it (Nelson, 14). According “Circus Animals are Abused” baby elephants are torn from their mothers at unnaturally young ages to be trained. One shocking training method entails hosing down elephants prior to applying a hotshot, thereby making their sensitive skin even more vulnerable to pain. As well as the physical pain caused by the incessant repetition of uncomfortable exercises and beatings by their ‘trainers’, the animals also suffer psychological torment due to the confinement, solitude and forced pairing of animals from different species. Most of the training occurs privately, making it easy for many to deny that cruelty to animals exists in the entertainment field. Regardless of training, wild animals used for entertainment behave naturally and unpredictably.

The graph above shows a comparison between the animals whose abuse are often reported. Dogs are number one, other animals (including horses, whales, elephants, and bigger cats) are second, and cats are third.
Circus animals do not perform these tricks because they want to and they do not do any of these meaningless acts in their natural habitat.

The only reason circus animals perform is because they are scared of what will happen to them. Due to the cruel behavior many circus animals become dysfunctional, unhealthy, depressed, and aggressive. These intelligent captive animals sometimes snap under the pressure of constant abuse. Others make their feelings abundantly clear when they get a chance. In the documentary blackfish killer whales become hyper-aggressive when confined in captivity. Multiple attacks proven that keeping these creatures in captivity is a safety hazard. In February, 2010, Tilikum dragged senior Seaworld trainer Dawn Brancheau into the pool and forced her underwater, eventually killing her. Killer whales are not aggressive in the wild but confinement can lead to dangerous behavior toward both humans and fellow marine mammals. Keeping the unstable animals close to the trainers is unacceptable and should not be allowed. This not only puts multiple people in danger but other animals as

well.
The way the industry cares, trains, and keeps the animals in captivity is a form of abuse. Keeping the animals in small spaces and using unethical training methods. The animals in captivity have feelings, just like humans, and often show them. The industry does not worry about the animals and their feelings. The industry is filled with cold hearted thieves, willing to hurt innocent animals for a quick buck. Now animal welfarist are starting to speak on behalf of the animals in captivity. Documentaries, like blackfish, show what it is really like for animals in captivity. The factual evidence is starting to help people understand what it is really like for the animals after the show. Change is already starting to take place at Seaworld in San Diego, California. It has been announced that 2016 will be the last year Seaworld San Diego will conduct their famous shamu show. The orcas are not going away completely but will be placed in a more “natural” environment (Seaworld San Diego).