Don't tell me this is another circus debate! For the love of this forum @BillyT please do not start yet another pointless debate about circus husbandry and enrichment as there are a few major thread discussions on this debate.
However, I think you cannot judge a circus if you have not been there. Just because there are 3 lions standing on podiums does not mean you can judge the animal husbandry of the entire circuis or at all by this image and I would imagine that these animals would get a more enriched and stimulated life than in a zoo.
All i'm saying is don't judge a book by it's cover.
Upon asking if I could during the daytime (the show was in the evening) someone from the circus took me to see the lions' daytime quarters. I was stunned at the relatively large enclosure (for a travelling circus, it is put up on each location) and thay they have free access to both the travel wagon and the enclosure, which ususally is on grass. Like for many others, my image of circus animals' quarters are all but positive, but that stirs from movies and books about the past.
BillyT: if you're an animal rights activist whose sole purpose here is to stir up argument, do us all a favour and get lost.
why do you assume i am 12-15?
Didnt your mother ever tell you never to assume? Just ask geoffrey lennon (assumption is the mother of all fk ups)
And whats my age got to do with anything!? you seem to be like alot of members here, so quick to patronize the younger members of this group, yet your little ****** comments bring nothing to the argument? except your want to argue with a 12-15 yo Im no expert but i know that a wild animal
doesnt belong on the road for days on end in cramped conditions unable to settle into its surroundings.
I know a wild animal doesnt belong in a enviroment that consists of 100s of cheering and clapping people flashing lights ect ect.....!
I know a wild animal doesnt need to be made to do things it doesnt want to do by a bully with a whip
I know nearly 80% of lions have been rescued from these places including last year the biggest rescue of over 30 lions from romania for being ill treated
I know there are many lion attacks at circuses, IN MY EYES NOT ENOUGH THO....!
If you actually understood Lion husbandry, and had worked with the species you would understand why they are suited to the circus.
I am the first one to Stand up for younger members, so do not try and turn this onto me due to your uneducated response.
Your age is merely an indicator of your level of experience with the animals, working, learning and developing.
I dont defend what happened to Geoffery, and dont condone it, Its the risk you take. I worked full contact with Lions sucsessfully and so do many people in Zoo's and Circus around the world
I said without working with the species you cannot guage the requirements of the species adequatley.
Lions sleep, pretty much all day, what better suited species to travelling!
They can have large ranges in the wild, so new areas no worries.
They have been known to stay in a small area if everying in available even better!
Haven't you ever wondered why for centuries Lions have been sucessful zoo staples?
The word is gauge, adequately,everything and successful.
And everything you have mentioned is laughable
they have been known to stay in small areas = small cages traveling for days?
they have large ranges in the wild = miles on the clock?
sleeping for many hours = rattling about in a trailer?
This is comical but at the same time your boring me to much. i hope you DONT get mauled at a circus!
For days at a time - Only proves your lack of knowledge of the modern circus industry!
Rattling about in a trailer - or sleeping around hundreds of screaming children
Quite frankly too many people like yourself look at this was to anthropomorphicly, the lions are Fed, Watered, Sleep well, are protected and enriched. They don't care about anything else, it seems to only be people with views like yours that do!
Without wanting to get involved in a slanging match, there's another point about lions and circus work. They are a social cat that is hard-wired to dominance hierarchies; being 'told' what to do [albeit by a member of another species, but one they are socialised to] is not an unnatural situation for them.
Are there any statistics on relative longevity of circus lions compared with those in zoos? Any evidence of stress-related conditions in circus lions that don't occur in zoo lions? That's the sort of evidence that matters when evaluating lifestyles of captive animals. Incidentally, do circus lions stereotype?
Granted that some species are domesticated and some only a few generations from the wild, I think too much is made of the distinction between a wild and a domestic animal. The old-style falconers could have a wild caught adult hawk flying free and working within weeks of capture. Put a chicken's eggs under a pheasant and the young grow up as wild as Junglefowl. Miss out on the early socialisation of a puppy, and you have a very difficult animal to do anything with. Wild caught adult lions have been successfully worked in the circus ring.
Having said all that, some species appear unsuited to circus life, such as Chimpanzees, which I understand cannot be worked as adults, and have an uncertain future when 'retired'.
I would emphasise that I am have only a slight bias towards animals in circuses, in that their presence means I see more animals...... BUT, I'm as concerned about their quality of life as anybody else.
