The next time the circus rolls into Boston, it may be with dogs instead of elephants and tabby cats instead tigers, if Massachusetts state legislature passes a bill banning exotic animals from performing.
Circus leaders and others who make their living through animal entertainment testified against the bill at State House hearing Tuesday, saying they may have to move their businesses out of the state if the bill is passed.
Animal rights activists inspired the bill, arguing that animal performances are cruel and hurtful, but they were outnumbered at the hearing by opponents of the measure.
Ed Laquidera, owner of Animal Adventures, a small company that holds 3,000 animal shows a year, said many owners care about their animals and would never mistreat them.
“No one wants animal abuse,” Laquidera said. “If there are some bad auto mechanics, they don’t say ‘no more auto mechanics.’ They shut him down.”
If this bill becomes a law, Laquidera said he would either have to give up his exotic animals or leave the state altogether.
“I take minimal salary,” he said. “I ask nothing of the state more than to run my business.”
Other owners also testified that they need the animals to run their businesses.
Wayne McCarney, CEO of The Big E, an annual state fair, said one of the reasons people attend the fair is to see domestic and exotic animals.
Chris Hamilton, a zoo worker in charge of elephants for 12 years, said the animal entertainment industry has “very strict laws” against abuse. He noted that circus magnate Ringling Brothers is also doing valuable research in veterinary medicine and has donated to elephant Herpes research.
But Charles Levin, an attorney representing the Massachusetts Animal Rights Coalition said there is a “dark side” to circuses.
“If circuses were safe, wholesome, family fun, we would not be here today,” Levin said.
Supporters of the bill said wild animals cannot be domesticated, only broken and trained through “domination and pain.”
According to bill supporters, large, exotic animals such as elephants and tigers are often chained and restricted to small cages, which can lead to anxiety and boredom.
Animal rights activists were tough on Ringling Brothers and Barnum ‘ Bailey, which they said has committed more than 100 animal abuse violations since 1993. According to animal rights activist Helen Rachek, elephants as young as eight months old died during training, a lion died from heat and dehydration after being abandoned on a train, and a tiger was shot five times while in its cage.
Rachek said live animals aren’t necessary to entertain children.
“As a mother and a grandmother, I can say that children enjoy any family outing or event,” Rachek said. “It doesn’t have to involve animals.”
Activists said 27 circuses, like Cirque de Soleil, operate without any animals, and many countries, including Israel, Australia, Finland and Sweden, have bans similar to the proposal for Massachusetts.
According to activist Emily Clairemont, the U.S. Department of Agriculture, which oversees all circuses, is “ill-equipped” and understaffed.” Only 100 USDA employees are responsible for more than 8,000 facilities, she said.
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