From the audience’s perspective, circus show might seem like an awe-inspiring performance starring

some of the most exotic and wild creatures known to man. But little does everyone know, circus
animals are not treated like the stars they are. In reality, many endure the worst conditions imaginable and
receive horrific treatment from the circus to learn elaborate tricks and stunts for shows. We believe that
those animals don’t deserve to be treated like that. Therefore, we, as the proposition team, will propose
the ban on the use of animals in circuses. There are several reasons why most people agree with banning
animals in the circus, include:

1. Cruel “training” techniques: Animals in circuses are forced to perform frightening, unnatural,
and even painful tricks, night after night. Circus representatives often claim that only “positive
reinforcement” is used in handling animals – and this may indeed be the style of interaction that
audiences see in the ring and in carefully-controlled public tours – but it is standard circus
industry practice to use bullhooks, a steel rod resembling a sharpened fireplace poker that is used
to prod, hook, and strike elephants, to dominate and control them through fear, pain, and injury.
Using varying amounts of pressure, the sharp tip and hook are pushed into sensitive spots on an
elephant’s body, while the handle is used as a club to strike areas where little tissue separates skin
and bone.

2. Months of travel: Animals in circuses spend about 11 months of the year traveling. For
thousands of hours, over long distances, they may be chained while not performing, transported
in vehicles that lack climate control, and forced to stand or lie in their own waste.

3. Social isolation and cramped conditions: In the wild, elephants live in large, sociable herds and
walk up to 30 miles every day. Most other wild animals found in circus settings, including lions
and tigers, are also constantly on the move in their native habitats. Depriving these animals of the
freedom to roam, interact naturally with members of their species, and engage in other instinctual
behaviors is inherently cruel.

4. Not education: Circuses are entertainment, not education. Watching wild animals perform
unnatural tricks does not teach children respect or appreciation for animals. Instead, circuses
teach children that it is acceptable to exploit and mistreat animals for amusement.

5. Not conservation: Endangered animals born in circus “conservation” programs have never been
released into the wild; most are slated to become “replacement” performers. Conservation is used
as a cover: Captive breeding programs do nothing to address the real threats endangered animals
face in the wild, such as poaching, trophy hunting, loss of habitat, and loss of prey, and the
captive-bred animals were never meant to be released into the wild.

6. Aggression and stress caused by unnatural confinement: Animals in circuses are forced into
lives far different from the ones nature intended. The conflict between their instincts and the
harsh realities of captivity – as well as training methods that utilize violence, fear, and
intimidation – cause wild animals tremendous amounts of stress. It is little wonder that some
animals literally are driven mad and rebel in rampages that injure and kill people.

7. Animals, seeking freedom and space, escape from their enclosures: The conditions of
animals’ lives in circuses stifle their natural instincts and cause extreme stress. There have been
numerous instances of animals, seeking freedom and space, escaping their enclosures in circuses
and freely roaming outside of the property where they are performing. These are wild animals
 brought by the circuses into unnatural proximity to human communities where they could pose a
potential danger to people.

In conclusion, animals used for entertainment — whether wild or domesticated — are poorly treated, and
the practice should be eliminated altogether. Circus animals are heavily beaten and mentally tormented
for our pleasure. They are stripped of their natural habitats, and most may never see their families ever
again. Animal circuses should be banned as the trainers are spiteful to animals by using wretched tools to
make them do tricks and by putting innocent bystanders’ lives at risk.