Re: animal cruelty
Julie Stauffer
<<These kinds of training techniques have been documented>>
Well of course they've been documented. Cannibalism in humans has been
documented....but is it the norm?
I keep bringing this back to other types of show animals because that's what
I know. A couple of years ago in Dallas a 4-H kid found out that his pig
was not going to make the weight limit....so he stuck a hose down the pig's
throat and turned on the water....until the pig died....in front of several
witnesses...who did nothing to stop him.
To me, that is horrifying. It is well documented that it occurred, even
made the paper, but it is not the norm.
Julie
Well of course they've been documented. Cannibalism in humans has been
documented....but is it the norm?
I keep bringing this back to other types of show animals because that's what
I know. A couple of years ago in Dallas a 4-H kid found out that his pig
was not going to make the weight limit....so he stuck a hose down the pig's
throat and turned on the water....until the pig died....in front of several
witnesses...who did nothing to stop him.
To me, that is horrifying. It is well documented that it occurred, even
made the paper, but it is not the norm.
Julie
marji
A t 12:15 8/20/02 -0500, Julie wrote:
Trainers Grim Details of Discipline
In addition to bullhooks, trainers use baseball bats, ax handles,
pitchforks, and electric shock. Chains, ropes, and block-and-tackle are
used as restraints.
Alan Roocroft, an elephant consultant to circuses and zoos, cowrote in his
book Managing Elephants:
[W]hen corporal punishment is administered to an elephant, it has to be
fairly forceful in order that it is perceived by the elephant to be
punishment at all. [T]he trainer must now intimidate the animal in order
to acquire a dominant position. [R]estraining a potentially hostile
elephant needs at least a crew of eight, preferably 10, in order to insure
sufficient muscle is available. Once immobilized, the elephant may be the
object of punishment in the form of blows with a wooden rod.
In I Loved Rogues, elephant trainers George "Slim" Lewis and Byron Fish wrote:
Circus animals are performers, and training them depends on a certain
amount of rough treatment.
What is true of training for performance is even more true of the basic
discipline that must be established before an elephant can work or act. It
isn't kept in a cage, and, while it is chained much of the time, there are
many occasions when it walks at liberty with only the respect it pays its
handler to keep it in check. It is absolutely essential, therefore, that
the animal must have this respect for its handler; and to get down to blunt
facts, this quality begins with fear: fear of punishment and discomfort.
A good stout stick should be used, and it should have a sharp prod on the
end of it to keep the elephant from turning its head.
[Teaching an elephant to lie down is] done by gradually tightening the
chain, a few inches at a time, until the elephant is supporting its weight
entirely on the front and hind legs that are free. It is very tiring for a
bull to hold up its mass in this manner. When the handler sees it
weakening, he gives the command, Down! Come on down.
The command is repeated until the elephant obeys. Just before it gives in,
it will show signs of fear and defeat. Its eyes will bulge and its bowels
become loose and watery as they are emptied several times.
When the elephant finally surrenders and falls over on its side, it knows
it is comparatively helpless and that it has lost a psychological battle.
This was excerpted from http://www.circuses.com/bullhook.html . Please go
there for further information about how this kind of cruelty is
employed. This is industry standard, and it is not disputed. You can
click on this link http://www.circuses.com/facts.html to view the USDA
inspection reports for 33 individual circuses.
Also, see http://www.house.gov/judiciary/ride0613.htm which testimony given
by Tom Rider, a former circus employee, to the House Committee on the
Judiciary in June 2000. There were others who gave testimony that day. To
read the testimony, click here http://www.house.gov/judiciary/3.htm and
then scroll down or search for H.R. 2929.
talking about other kinds of animal shows. I am not attempting to indict
everyone involved in every type of animal showing. I don't know enough
about it for one thing, and I appreciate your shedding light on the
subject. But, about circuses, rodeos, and roadside "zoos" I do know a
thing or two about, and the norm in these venues is cruelty and
exploitation for greed and profit. I can say that there is no such thing
as a humane circus act or a humane rodeo. Whenever you see exotic, wild
animals performing in unnatural ways, fear and intimidation are essential
parts of the trainer's bag to tricks to get them to do this. Where exotic
animals are concerned, not only are the animals subjected to cruel
treatment, but people are exposed to dangerous situations. In these
situations, the animals never win. I cannot imagine the justification for
plucking a wild animal out of its natural setting to be subjected to a
lifetime of horrors. To suggest otherwise is pure denial. No insight can
be gained, no conservation efforts realized. Furthermore, when animal
circuses and rodeos are held out as "educational" opportunities for
children and the public, nothing other than the acceptance of cruelty is
taught.
Interestingly, the animal circus industry is not doing all that well these
days. Attendance has been declining at circuses that use animal acts and
animal-free circuses have been steadily gaining in popularity. In April
2001, Time Magazine said, "Mixing hokum with the perception of brutality,
the traditional circus seems uncomfortably out of place in todays
entertainment market."
~marji~
[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
><<These kinds of training techniques have been documented>>Yes. These are accounts that have been written by elephant trainers:
>
>Well of course they've been documented. Cannibalism in humans has been
>documented....but is it the norm?
Trainers Grim Details of Discipline
In addition to bullhooks, trainers use baseball bats, ax handles,
pitchforks, and electric shock. Chains, ropes, and block-and-tackle are
used as restraints.
Alan Roocroft, an elephant consultant to circuses and zoos, cowrote in his
book Managing Elephants:
[W]hen corporal punishment is administered to an elephant, it has to be
fairly forceful in order that it is perceived by the elephant to be
punishment at all. [T]he trainer must now intimidate the animal in order
to acquire a dominant position. [R]estraining a potentially hostile
elephant needs at least a crew of eight, preferably 10, in order to insure
sufficient muscle is available. Once immobilized, the elephant may be the
object of punishment in the form of blows with a wooden rod.
In I Loved Rogues, elephant trainers George "Slim" Lewis and Byron Fish wrote:
Circus animals are performers, and training them depends on a certain
amount of rough treatment.
What is true of training for performance is even more true of the basic
discipline that must be established before an elephant can work or act. It
isn't kept in a cage, and, while it is chained much of the time, there are
many occasions when it walks at liberty with only the respect it pays its
handler to keep it in check. It is absolutely essential, therefore, that
the animal must have this respect for its handler; and to get down to blunt
facts, this quality begins with fear: fear of punishment and discomfort.
A good stout stick should be used, and it should have a sharp prod on the
end of it to keep the elephant from turning its head.
[Teaching an elephant to lie down is] done by gradually tightening the
chain, a few inches at a time, until the elephant is supporting its weight
entirely on the front and hind legs that are free. It is very tiring for a
bull to hold up its mass in this manner. When the handler sees it
weakening, he gives the command, Down! Come on down.
The command is repeated until the elephant obeys. Just before it gives in,
it will show signs of fear and defeat. Its eyes will bulge and its bowels
become loose and watery as they are emptied several times.
When the elephant finally surrenders and falls over on its side, it knows
it is comparatively helpless and that it has lost a psychological battle.
This was excerpted from http://www.circuses.com/bullhook.html . Please go
there for further information about how this kind of cruelty is
employed. This is industry standard, and it is not disputed. You can
click on this link http://www.circuses.com/facts.html to view the USDA
inspection reports for 33 individual circuses.
Also, see http://www.house.gov/judiciary/ride0613.htm which testimony given
by Tom Rider, a former circus employee, to the House Committee on the
Judiciary in June 2000. There were others who gave testimony that day. To
read the testimony, click here http://www.house.gov/judiciary/3.htm and
then scroll down or search for H.R. 2929.
>I keep bringing this back to other types of show animals because that's whatJulie, what you are talking about here is horrific, yes! But I am not
>I know. A couple of years ago in Dallas a 4-H kid found out that his pig
>was not going to make the weight limit....so he stuck a hose down the pig's
>throat and turned on the water....until the pig died....in front of several
>witnesses...who did nothing to stop him.
>
>To me, that is horrifying. It is well documented that it occurred, even
>made the paper, but it is not the norm.
talking about other kinds of animal shows. I am not attempting to indict
everyone involved in every type of animal showing. I don't know enough
about it for one thing, and I appreciate your shedding light on the
subject. But, about circuses, rodeos, and roadside "zoos" I do know a
thing or two about, and the norm in these venues is cruelty and
exploitation for greed and profit. I can say that there is no such thing
as a humane circus act or a humane rodeo. Whenever you see exotic, wild
animals performing in unnatural ways, fear and intimidation are essential
parts of the trainer's bag to tricks to get them to do this. Where exotic
animals are concerned, not only are the animals subjected to cruel
treatment, but people are exposed to dangerous situations. In these
situations, the animals never win. I cannot imagine the justification for
plucking a wild animal out of its natural setting to be subjected to a
lifetime of horrors. To suggest otherwise is pure denial. No insight can
be gained, no conservation efforts realized. Furthermore, when animal
circuses and rodeos are held out as "educational" opportunities for
children and the public, nothing other than the acceptance of cruelty is
taught.
Interestingly, the animal circus industry is not doing all that well these
days. Attendance has been declining at circuses that use animal acts and
animal-free circuses have been steadily gaining in popularity. In April
2001, Time Magazine said, "Mixing hokum with the perception of brutality,
the traditional circus seems uncomfortably out of place in todays
entertainment market."
~marji~
[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]