Should wild animals be in a circus?

For many people the circus is the greatest show on earth. But the prosecution of circus legend Mary Chipperfield for cruelty to the chimp Trudy has prompted animal rights supporters to call for abolition of the events.

Circus supporters claimed the cruelty case was an isolated incident and said the animals are treated well.

Opponents say that no matter how pleasant the conditions the animals are kept in they still suffer from a lack of space and frustration of their natural drives.

NO

Jennifer Johnson has lived and worked with circuses in North America and Europe for the past 12 years.

She is currently involved in events publicity with Duffy's circus, Ireland's oldest circus. Jennifer has a Masters degree in anthropology and has carried out research into the role of animals in circuses.

IT WOULD be a great mistake to ban exotic animals from appearing in the circus. Dr Kiley Worthington, who is an expert on animal behaviour, was commissioned by the RSPCA in England to conduct a long- term study of animals in the circus.

After living for eighteen months with circuses and zoos in Great Britain she concluded that circuses, by their nature, are not cruel to animals.

Her report states: "The training of the animals was generally professional and of a high standard and skill... There was no evidence of cruelty or prolonged pain and suffering during the training of any of the animals I witnessed.

Most of the training was done with the aid of positive reinforcement, such as using meat on a stick to encourage the animal. Negative reinforcement - a whip or verbal scolding - was used sometimes, but no more than is usual with a good horse or dog trainer."

This scientific study is important as, for the first time, it provides conclusive evidence that circuses provide a positive, caring environment for both animals and humans.

My own research on circuses in both North America and Europe supports her conclusions.

In my years of living 24 hours a day on the circus I have seen many inspectors from the Humane Society and other animal welfare organisations come to the circus.

I have never once seen them issue a complaint about the care and treatment of the animals.

The circus is open to public scrutiny all the time - we have nothing to hide.

The circus owner, David Duffy, has nursed and looked after animals all his life. The idea of being cruel just does not come into it.

Unfortunately there have been some cases of cruelty, like the Mary Chipperfield incident. But in every part of society there are some people who abuse the system.

There are bad parents and bad teachers - but that doesn't mean we try to stop some people becoming parents or prevent our children going to school.

I am pleased to see those people who are cruel to animals punished as they reflect badly upon the whole industry.

The Dublin Society for the Protection of Cruelty to Animals is leading a campaign to ban the use of circus animals, but they can make no links to cruelty within Irish circuses.

Far from being cruel, the animals we work with are learning complex behaviour patterns which they could not learn in the wild.

We think that it's all right for children to learn complex series of behaviour, such as reading, writing or playing football.

But when it comes to animals, many humans believe that all they should do is eat and sleep. Animals may not have the same cognitive processes as humans, but it does not mean that they are incapable of learning a series of routines.

It is very rare for someone involved in a circus to capture an animal from the wild.

All Duffy's tigers are born and bred within the circus.

This is their natural environment, and it is unfair to compare captive animals with those in the wild.

Duffy's circus is also involved in a tiger conservation programme.

There are an estimated 2,000 Siberian tigers left in the wild and we are the only people in the world breeding them.

Some of our cubs stay with the circus and others are donated to a wildlife centre in Hertfordshire. This is a World Wildlife Foundation project which helps preserve wildlife species and habitats.

These animals would not survive in the wild on their own, but at the centre they are helped to adapt.

Contrary to what most people believe tigers live longer in circuses, often until they are 20 - 25 years. They are well cared for and lead a more healthier, active and stimulating lifestyle.

In the wild the average life expectancy is six years.

Duffy's are members of the Circus Proprietors Association of Great Britain and follow a self-imposed code of conduct.

This includes regulating housing, feeding, transport and veterinary care for the animals.

Duffy's have six tigers, llamas, horses, dogs and a camel. We have also introduced a new act called the Amazing World of Reptiles, which has nine snakes and three crocodiles.

The animals don't suffer any distress whatsoever and we have a specially built truck for them,, featuring a pool and waterfall.

There are 40 people involved in the circus including performers and those who look after the animals.

We travel together for 10 months of the year and are one big happy family, and that includes the animals too.

I believe the animals do enjoy life in the circus. They respond very well to the audiences in the tent. When the music starts I believe they are genuinely excited. Performance is part of their daily routine.

Duffy's circus has 500 performances a year, but the animals are not overworked. The tigers do two seven minute routines a day.

Between 80,000-100,000 people come to our circus each year and they all want to see the animals.

We wouldn't be a proper circus if we didn't have animals.

YES

David Harding is the vice president of the USPCA and the vet advisor in Coleraine, Co Antrim.

He has been a veterinary surgeon for 15 years and has worked closely with many wild animals in zoos and circuses.

While he admits that animals live longer in captivity, he says it is the quality of life that is important, not the duration

I AM completely against the exhibition of wild animals either in circuses or zoos.

It's morally wrong to make animals perform for our benefit and deny them the freedom to roam in the wild where they belong.

Circuses are a relic from the past and have no function in today's society. They happened in the days before television when people didn't have an alternative form of entertainment.

But now we have plenty of ways to amuse ourselves without making animals suffer.

We can no longer argue that zoos and circuses educate us about wild animals' natural behaviour because they are living in an unnatural environment.

We can learn about these animals by watching natural history programmes where they are in their natural habitat and not doing silly tricks.

People may think it's clever to see elephants sitting on a ball. But we can't ask the animals if they do like it and we don't give them a choice.

Most animals are shy and prefer to stay hidden so we should respect their privacy.

You may argue that they have been brought up in captivity and therefore show fewer signs of distress than if they had been taken from the wild.

But does that mean that if a child is born into poverty it should stay that way forever? Wild animals should only be bred in captivity if it is the intention to eventually release them into the wild.

Although I'm against the exhibition of animals I'm not saying that all circuses treat their animals badly.

On the contrary, most circuses in Britain and Ireland which I have dealt with meet the required standards for keeping these animals.

They feed them well and whenever they are ill they take them to the vet immediately. But I believe this is primarily a financial motive because an injured animal can't perform as well as a healthy one.

The accommodation in which the animals stay is usually fine - but there is no way they can give them the amount of space they really need.

Lions and tigers need a minimum of two to three acres to roam around in, not a 40 foot trailer.

Animals can also become mentally ill when they don't have enough space to do the things they would normally do in the wild.

They start acting abnormally, for example excessive grooming, rubbing sores until they are raw and pacing up and down in their cages.

It is true that on average circus and zoo animals live longer in captivity than in the wild. But it is the quality of life not the duration of it that is important.

In the wild animals will have natural predators and will be prone to disease but this is the way of nature.

When these circus animals retire I think they should be put out of their misery rather than let them live on in a cage.

Wild animals are used to being active and spend a lot of time looking for food. In civilisation they are given the food, they eat it and they have nothing more to do.

Animals are very adaptable, and are resistant to huge changes in weather conditions. It's the same with habitat, they alter their behaviour rather than pine to death. But this is not ideal.

I believe that most circus people are not cruel, evil people. The ones I have met have been very nice people and I appreciate that for many of them it is a family tradition and a way of life.

But I would like to see a change in society's attitude to these performances so that the next generation will disapprove of such practices.

Wild animals are made to perform for our benefit, whether in circuses or in zoos, and I can see no justification for that.

These people are altering animal behaviour to satisfy their needs to prove they have control.

The recent scandal involving animal cruelty at Chipperfield's circus highlights the problem.

Northern Ireland is the only place in the United Kingdom where the Dangerous and Wild Animals Act does not apply.

Anyone can breed any animal they want. But this is set to change on March 31, this year when new legislation is introduced.

There is the big question of what we would do with all these animals if we closed all the zoos and circuses.

I think we could release them back into the wild. Even if they may not survive we should at least try.

This is preferable to a life of misery in a cage.

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