What do you feel when you see this photo?
When I look at this photo, it makes me want to cry. Seeing wild animals being forced to perform tricks to entertain US, makes my heart scream. I can think of a million and one ways to spend my time than paying to see an animal forced to do something so foreign and unnatural.
I feel fortunate to have been part of advocating for Illinois to become the first state in the U.S. to ban the use of elephants in traveling shows in 2017.
Unfortunately, there are still wild animal exhibits that travel through the U.S. with primates, big cats, and bears. These animals are meant to be wild but are instead subjected to abusive training, constant confinement, and neglect.
Not only are these exhibits exemplary of egregious abuse of animals, but are a public safety threat, display a disregard to animal conservation, and are becoming less and less popular. Many of these traveling shows have histories of federal Animal Welfare Act violations and dangerous incidents.
If you see a wild animal exhibit, come through your town, call your state legislators and tell them these traveling shows are in no way benefitting the captive animals and are a major public safety threat.
To find your U.S. state legislators, go to www.openstates.org
Photo courtesy of Alamy
