PETA Challenges Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus' Deceptive Ads


According to Ringling’s latest ad campaign, “All our newborns come with a lifetime guarantee.” The Ringling ad goes on to claim that its captive-breeding program is somehow helping endangered Asian elephants. Ringling must believe that there is a sucker born every minute because PETA has evidence that the ads are pure fantasy. Government documents show that Ringling’s elephants suffer abuse and die prematurely, that the circus has been cited for more than 100 deficiencies in animal care, and that most of its elephants were captured in the wild. PETA is calling on the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) to yank the bogus ads.

False Claim #1: “All our newborns come with a lifetime guarantee.”

Reality: Ringling forcibly removes still-nursing baby elephants from their mothers, causing trauma, harm, and even death. This barbaric practice has contributed to the deaths of two baby elephants and to the painful injuries of two others.

• Ringling paid $20,000 to settle U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) charges of failing to provide veterinary care to a dying baby elephant named Kenny. Kenny was forced to perform despite obvious illness and was found dead in his stall in a pool of bloody diarrhea.
• Benjamin drowned while trying to escape the pokes and prods of a handler chasing him with a bullhook. Even though elephants are excellent swimmers, Benjamin had never had the opportunity to learn how to swim from his mother.
• When taken from their mothers, Doc and Angelica suffered painful injuries as they struggled in terror against ropes tightly binding their legs in a futile attempt to rejoin their mothers. The ropes left raw wounds on their legs.
Ringling trumpets the births of “15 bundles of joy” at its breeding compound since 1992. In fact, four of the 15 births that Ringling is taking credit for occurred at Busch Gardens, not Ringling’s Elephant Conservation Center, and belonged to an elephant trainer named Roman Schmitt.

False Claim #2: “Endangered species? Not if we can help it.”

Reality: At least 17 of Ringling’s elephants have died since 1992. Besides the fact that Ringling’s endangered Asian elephants are dying off faster than the circus is breeding them, most of its elephants were actually captured in the wild. Of the estimated 63 elephants currently used by Ringling, 44 were taken out of the wild in traumatic capture expeditions, and another 21 who died or were transferred to other facilities in recent years were also taken directly from the wild and their families overseas.

Furthermore, none of Ringling’s elephants have any hope of ever being returned to the wild where Asian elephants are listed as endangered. Ringling’s captive breeding program is all about replenishing its supply of tormented performers, not about helping elephants in their natural habitats.

False Claim #3: “You’ve got to love them. Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey sure does. We live with them, care for them …”

Reality: Elephants in the wild spend most of their time foraging, roaming, and bathing. In contrast, Ringling’s elephants are packed tightly into hot, reeking boxcars and shackled by four legs for long journeys across the country. Between shows, the elephants remain shackled or confined to tiny pens. Instead of tender, loving care, Ringling’s trainers use sharp, metal bullhooks and whips to punish elephants and make them perform physically strenuous tricks.

Ringling’s elephants have rarely, if ever, attained their expected life span of 70 years. Of the 17 dead elephants PETA has identified, at least eight never even reached the age of 45. Several deaths were attributed to arthritis, a result of the unnatural and difficult circus life. Ringling elephants as young as 16 have developed this crippling condition.

False Claim #4: “We … share all we learn with the world.”

Reality: Ringling operates under a cloak of secrecy, denying access to training sessions and withholding even the most basic information concerning its elephants’ names and premature deaths of its adult elephants. The circus has also refused to cooperate with government investigations into mistreatment. The USDA resorted to issuing a subpoena for documents relating to the drowning death of Benjamin when the circus failed to turn them over as required by federal law. Ringling personnel were belligerent and uncooperative with USDA investigators questioning the raw wounds found on baby elephants and were even reluctant to allow officials to take pictures, forcing them to return the next day after the wounds had been cleaned up.

What You Can Do
Please write to FTC officials and ask them to halt Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus’ new ad, entitled “All Our Newborns Come With a Lifetime Guarantee.” The ad is designed to dupe a trusting public that would be appalled if it knew how Ringling obtains, trains, and treats the elephants it uses, including baby elephants who have died needlessly at its hand. Contact:
Federal Trade Commission
CRC-240
600 Pennsylvania Ave. N.W.
Washington, DC 20580
1-877-FTC-HELP (382-4357)
Please mention that the advertisement pertains to Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus, owned by Feld Entertainment, 8607 Westwood Center Dr. Vienna, VA 22182.

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