Two-time Tony winner and Oscar nominee Viola Davis has sent a letter to state legislators in Rhode Island urging them to support proposed legislation to prevent elephants traveling with circuses from enduring bullhook abuse and long periods of chaining. Davis was raised in Central Falls, Rhode Island, and attended Rhode Island College.

© StarMaxInc.com

Smallest State Tackles a Huge Problem

The star of the hotly anticipated Ender's Game hopes the bill will bring about an endgame for the well-documented elephant abuse by circuses that travel within her home state, including Ringling Bros., Cole Bros., and Piccadilly Circus. 

Davis joins Alec Baldwin, Jada Pinkett Smith, Demi Moore, Olivia Munn, and many others—both famous and not so famous—who have spoken out against the use of bullhooks and other practices that cause elephants and other animals forced to travel with circuses to endure great physical and emotional damage.

What You Can Do

If you live in Rhode Island, join Viola Davis in asking your state legislators to support the ban on bullhooks and the chaining of elephants. But no matter where you reside, please do your part to end circus cruelty. 

With cruelty as blatant as that displayed at Piccadilly Circus, it is no surprise that the circus is the subject of a whistleblower's report that provides the basis for a PETA complaint to the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA). The complaint details allegation of the circus's habitual physical abuse of animals and systematic failure to provide veterinary care, among other apparent violations of the federal Animal Welfare Act (AWA).

blieusong | cc by 2.0 

Cruel Whip

In the affidavit, the whistleblower asserts that while working during the circus's Waterbury, Connecticut, performances, Piccadilly's general manager, Zachary Garden, beat a zebra named Ziggy after the animal jumped out of the performance ring during an evening performance.

During the beating, Ziggy was reportedly held in place by the general supervisor, known as Bucket, while Garden "forcefully [struck] Ziggy with a tiger stick—an approximately 3' long plastic or fiberglass stick with a blunt metal end—with such force that the zebra fell to his front knees and then fell over sideways." Once Ziggy got up, according to the whistleblower, Garden struck him "with great force at least two more times," and the zebra "vocalized loudly and in a strained manner" at the start of the beating and then turned silent. After this beating, Ziggy returned to his cage. 

Animals would be physically punished whenever their performances were "slightly off," and Garden would "strike animals using the handle of a 10'-12' lunge whip when they did not perform their act perfectly," according to the whistleblower. The whistleblower further alleges that Garden struck a camel named Thor—who is approximately 1 or 2 years old—in the right eye with the whip handle because the camel was standing a short distance away from where he was expected to stand, causing the eye to bleed. Furthermore, according to the statement, when a camel named Reece fails to sit in training sessions for the end of performances, Garden uses the whip handle "to beat him on the legs until he oblige[s] or force[s] him down so hard that he … get[s] cuts on his knees."

Left for Dead

The whistleblower also alleged that:

• A handler "repeatedly kick[ed] a goat" while the animal was being loaded into a truck.
• A sheep with a broken leg—possibly from when a Piccadilly worker slammed a separating gate onto her leg or when she fell in the truck—languished without any veterinary care for at least two weeks.
• Animals did not receive veterinary care during the entire duration of the whistleblower's time with Piccadilly—a period of more than nine months—which is especially concerning given the deaths and injuries that reportedly occurred during transport.
• In December 2012, a llama named Spot "appeared to begin dying." Over the course of a single day, Spot developed uncontrollable diarrhea and was unable to stand, yet he "received no veterinary [care]," was not even moved from the pile of his own waste in which he was lying for five to six hours, and ultimately died.
• On or about April 1, 2012, a baby goat named Salem was taken into the woods, per Garden's instructions, after being apparently paralyzed in a transport accident. Garden was reportedly made aware of the fact that Salem was alive and suffering after he was taken into the woods, but he didn't provide the animal with veterinary care.
• A tiger, Rain, allegedly "constantly has a cut on her nose from rubbing it on the bars of the cages" but receives no veterinary care, even though a USDA inspector explicitly told Garden that her injury must be treated.
• While in Piccadilly's winter quarters in Ocala, Florida, this past winter, Garden reportedly instructed an employee to carry a dying sheep into the woods "and leave him to die."

What You Can Do

Please never attend a performance by Piccadilly or any other circus that uses animals. 

Groupon claims it's all about deals, but it's giving animals and consumers a raw one. The online discounter has been offering tickets to circus performances, claiming to promote only circuses with "clean [U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA)] and public record inspection reports from at least the past 2 years." But if Groupon were actually checking out the circuses it hawks tickets for, it would know that most of them have received numerous citations during the past two years from the USDA for violations of the Animal Welfare Act. PETA has written to Groupon demanding that the company stop misleading customers:

Just a few of the incidents that Groupon is content to overlook include the following:

• An elephant exhibitor for Piccadilly Circus was arrested in May on a warrant related to cruelty-to-animals charges.
• Exhibitors contracted by UniverSoul Circus received an Official Warning for failing to give veterinary care to elephants suffering from foot ailments—the number one reason why captive elephants must be euthanized.
• Jorje and Louann Barreda were cited by the USDA for repeatedly failing to provide four elephants with adequate foot care.

Tell Groupon to give animals a fair deal and stop promoting abusive circuses to make a quick buck.

When he learned that Topsy, an elephant used by Piccadilly Circus, tested positive in two tuberculosis (TB) screening tests, Maine's state veterinarian, Don Hoenig, barred the circus from taking her into the state. Since Piccadilly didn't want its other elephant, Annette, to perform without Topsy, neither elephant will be forced to perform in Maine.

Elephants such as this one are in danger of suffering the same fate as Topsy

Hoenig is adhering to the 2012 Guidelines for the Control of Tuberculosis in Elephants recommended by the United States Animal Health Association (USAHA), which aims to prevent, control, and eliminate disease. The USAHA recommends that elephants who test positive for TB should be restricted from all travel or public contact for a year since the disease is highly transmissible to humans, even without direct contact. PETA has repeatedly urged state and local health departments to protect the public when circuses are in town by prohibiting the exhibition of elephants who have reactive TB screening tests.

Elephants used by circuses have a heightened risk of developing active TB infections because their health is compromised by the constant stress of traveling inside filthy, poorly ventilated boxcars. They are also chained for up to 100 hours at a time and forced to perform unnatural and sometimes painful tricks. Multiple elephants used by Ringling Bros. and George Carden Circus have tested positive in TB screening tests but are still being forced to travel and perform.

Because of the fragile health of TB-positive elephants and the risk to the public, PETA has repeatedly asked the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) to make adherence to the USAHA guidelines a national requirement. The USDA even announced its intention to do so, but it has yet to act.

Please e-mail the USDA and ask it to protect elephants and the public from circus owners who sacrifice safety for profit.

D'Arcy Norman | cc by 2.0

Never doubt the power of your pocketbook: The Piccadilly Circus, which is currently touring California, is canceling performances left and right, reportedly because of low ticket sales. PETA's complaint to California officials about the circus's cruel kangaroo boxing show – which authorities in the state consider illegal – may also have played a role in the cancelations.

The boxing kangaroo act entails antagonizing a costumed kangaroo named Rocky into defending himself against his handler and audience members in a boxing ring. At least two kangaroos previously used in this act have died—one from a bacterial disease that can result from severe crowding, poor hygiene, poor diet, and stressful conditions.

Help us keep up the pressure: If Piccadilly Circus is coming to your town, click here for help speaking out against them—and please don't buy a ticket.

It sounds like a bit from a Jeff Foxworthy routine, but unfortunately, these rednecks aren't kidding: The Piccadilly Circus is hauling around a diapered kangaroo named Rocky and forcing him to "fight" in boxing matches. PETA has asked officials in Pueblo, Colorado, the circus's next stop, to enforce an ordinance that prohibits animals from being mistreated or abused and to stop the show from taking place. Regardless of where you live, please let Pueblo officials know that you expect them to pull the plug on this cruel show.

Rocky is clearly stressed and has charged people during photo shoots and chewed on his own arm, and although restrained, he has attempted to flee the ring during the act. Javier Martinez, the exhibitor responsible for this spectacle, has been cited by the U.S. Department of Agriculture for failing to handle a kangaroo in a manner that does not cause trauma, behavioral stress, physical harm, or unnecessary discomfort while in Pueblo in violation of the Animal Welfare Act.

At least two kangaroos used in Martinez's "boxing" act have died while touring with a circus, including one who died from complications of a deadly bacterial disease called "lumpy jaw," which can result from severe crowding, poor hygiene, poor diet, and stressful conditions.

Put the pressure on Pueblo officials by sending them an e-mail today and urging them to KO the kangaroo boxing act.

Written by Jennifer O'Connor

Update: PETA has filed a complaint with the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission regarding Rocky's suffering, and the agency has confirmed that it has opened an investigation into the matter. We have not received word from the commission on their findings yet, but members of the boxing community are weighing in on the matter – UFC welterweight Thiago Alves is spreading the word on Twitter. Please join him in pushing for Rocky's rescue.

Please thank the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission for pursuing an investigation and let the commission know that you find the act cruel and objectionable. Call the commission at 1-888-404-3922 or submit a comment here. 
 

It's hard to believe that anyone would haul around a diapered, distressed kangaroo and force him to box, but exhibitor Javier Martinez, who is currently traveling with the Piccadilly Circus, is doing just that. PETA has sent a complaint to the Florida State Boxing Commission (FSBC) and the Florida Department of Business & Professional Regulation urging them to intervene to stop the illegal "Rocky Show Circus," which is traveling throughout Florida. Boxing matches must be licensed by the FSBC, and there is no evidence that Martinez has complied.

D'Arcy Norman/cc by 2.0

 
Martinez, who dresses up a kangaroo named Rocky and taunts him into fighting back, has been repeatedly cited by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) for violations of the Animal Welfare Act, including failure to provide adequate veterinary care and safe animal enclosures. Rocky is clearly stressed and has charged people during photo shoots, chewed on his own arm, and attempted to flee the ring during the act.

At least two kangaroos used in Martinez's boxing act have died while touring with a circus, including one who died while traveling with UniverSoul Circus from complications of a deadly bacterial disease called "lumpy jaw," which can result from severe crowding, poor hygiene, poor diet, and stressful conditions.

Please only attend innovative, exciting circuses that don’t exploit animals, like Cirque du Soleil. Here’s a complete list. 
 

Written by Jennifer O'Connor