Stephen Payne, a spokesman for Feld Entertainment, said the decision was driven by economics, not complaints, as more cities placed restrictions on housing, restraining and transporting the animals.
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The 13 elephants traveling with Ringling Bros.at the time were to be retired and sent to Ringling Bros.
Ringling Bros. has been under criticism from a host of animal welfare groups for the way it captures, breeds, and trains elephants. However, he founded P.T. Barnum’s Grand Traveling Museum, Menagerie, Caravan, and Circus two years later.
“It’s first and foremost for the elephants”, he said.
Ringling’s new show will begin in July without the giant pachyderms.
Barnum and Bailey Circus is in Orlando this weekend at the Amway Center.
As LCA’s investigations have revealed, circus elephants suffer immensely.
The animals will be retired in May, almost a year and a half ahead of schedule.
According to Alana Feld of Feld Entertainment, each elephant costs approximately $65,000 per year to care for.
Elephants have been a symbol of the Ringling circus for decades.
“Baby elephants are forced to stand on a concrete floor for about 23 hours a day for up to six months, unable to lie down or even turn around…”
Elephant acts have been showcased by Ringling for more than a century and have often been featured on its posters.
Trudy Williams washes down an Asian elephant named Icky at the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Ce … Numerous animals at the center now help with the reproductive health of the Asian elephant, which has been endangered since 1986 due to destruction of habitat and poaching.
Feld Entertainment originally had said the elephants would be gradually withdrawn from the big top and completely gone only by 2018, but it now has accelerated that retirement date.
” PETA warns that because the circus has refused to retire these elephants to an accredited sanctuary, vigilance will be needed to determine how they are treated”, Newkirk said in a statement. As discussed in the official announcement, the animals will be moved to the Center for Elephant Conservation in May.
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Payne said customer feedback has been divided, with many telling the company they will miss the elephants, which have been a fixture throughout the 145-year history of Ringling Bros.
