To the editor:

The circus is coming to town! But while you may see what’s happening under the big top, they won’t show you what goes on behind the scenes.

Animals in circuses lead lives of misery, consisting of domination, confinement and violent training. It is standard practice to beat, shock and whip them to perform ridiculous tricks they cannot comprehend. Circuses have been quoted saying the tricks animals perform are taken from their natural behaviors in the wild. Well, when was the last time you saw a bear riding a bicycle in the wild, or a tiger jumping through rings of fire? You will never see this “natural” behavior because it is not natural.

Circus animals are deprived of their basic need to exercise, roam, socialize, forage and play. Stereotypic behaviors such as swaying back and forth, pacing, bar-biting and self-mutilation are common signs of mental distress. No animal will voluntarily perform the same grueling routines over and over hundreds of times a year on command. The animals must either be kept in pain or in constant fear of pain. Circuses would like you to believe they use positive reinforcement to train their animals. However, if circus trainers used positive reinforcement, they would be armed with a bag of peanuts, not whips and bullhooks.

Lastly, using wild animals in performances jeopardizes public safety. Since 1990, 47 people have been killed and more than 100 seriously injured by captive elephants.

I think sometimes society forgets to question “tradition” even when cruelty is involved. Maybe now is a good time to start.

Ann Wilson
Lawrence