Animal Welfare in Circus is Perfect (Part 2) by Terry Bunton

 

Circus aerialist and professional artist, Terry Bunton continues his passionate cry for reason against animal rights lunacy and the case for animal circuses...

What separates humans from other animal species is that we have a grammatical communication which has given us a way to educate future generations, form political alliances, play sports, cook our food, make personal choices through democracy, learn, pass exams to get qualifications, record the past, plan the future and organise the present. Yes, animals have memory and cognitive response to varying degrees, depending on species, but they do not have any of the above skills. 

However, the animal rights dogma perverts the Darwinian path and often twists to ridiculously silly ideas. For example, amongst thesefundamentalist militants there are even a few of those who have concluded thatbecause chimpanzees are the closest to use genetically, they should be givenVOTING RIGHTS!  Meanwhile uninformed pet owners and those who choose to eat meat and wear by-products such as shoes, belts and coats who are lured into supporting an animal rights campaign are unknowingly funding a dogma, which aims to take away these freedoms. Animal rights organizations are known for issuing aggressive propaganda targeted at parents and their children by declaring all meat-eaters to be murderers and the innocent practice of the family day out to the zoo or an animal circus to be a “wicked activity”.

Animal Welfare in Circus is Perfect (Part 1) by Terry Bunton

Image by Neal. via Flickr 

I have come to notice how many of our contributors reflect on time and how it relates to animal circuses. The changing of times in particular. Anna Webb originally remarked on this in her general discussion on "Our Changing Relationship with Animals". Now, in his début piece on "Astley's Legacy", circus aerialist and professional artist, Terry Bunton expresses his thoughts on the result of 30 years of anti-circus campaigning. Terry has appeared on several radio shows defending animal circuses and high-lighting the real threat of animal rights activism. An artist that has no connection with animal acts whatsoever, be it directly, through family or business, Terry's passion seems all the more heartfelt...

  

For two centuries up until about three decades ago, almost everyone in the UK visited circuses with animals at least annually.  Although it had always been their policy to oppose animal circuses the RSPCA had a begrudging respect for circus people and even awarded wild animal trainers for excellent husbandry.  Circus was regularly seen by millions of people on television as part of the norm.  And it was also one of our country’s most famous circus families that invented huge safari parks where circus animal were often retired.  Yet NOTHING (in Britain especially) is the victim of such ill-informed hysteria by the minority as the use of animals in circuses.