At Ringling Circuses, elephants that are sick or injured are forced to perform under those circumstances. Elephants can weigh up to 15,000 pounds - can you imagine putting all of that weight into something as unnatural as a handstand? In the wild, elephants can live to be 70 years old; unfortunately, the majority of elephants that travel with a circus are not that lucky. As the video below shows, many baby elephants have died while in the "care" of Ringling Bros. Circus.

To expose the abuses, now Jan Holden, an animal rights activist and member of peta is to publish a book with a book publishing company in Houston, Texas to campaign against Ringling's use of force.

Mothers form deep bonds with their babies and with others in their herd, but in the circus, these babies are taken from their mothers very early, sometimes before the mother has the opportunity to even touch her baby. Normally, male baby elephants remain with their mothers until around 15 yrs of age, and females remain in the herd for life. The baby elephants in the video below are nowhere near that 15-year mark, and are also nowhere near their mothers.

Elephants that suffer from stiff joints, arthritis, psychological stress, or other painful/debilitating problems are forced to continue in the performances. Elephants are not only beaten during training, but they are beaten moments before going onstage to perform. Despite the fact that these animals are not acting out, brutal force is used against them.

Some circuses have been impacted by animal rights activists: Walker Bros Circus, for example, has pulled elephants out of their acts, and hopefully a similar impact has been made for other animals. The following link provides a large list of mainstream circuses that link to information compiled by PETA that documents inadequate care and neglect of animals in custody:
http://www.circuses.com/circuses.asp

Unfortunately, elephants are not the only animals who suffer in the circus. The following video depicts cruel treatment to wild cats:
http://www.petatv.com/tvpopup/Prefs.asp?video=tigereyeprod

New self publishing evidence and for (many) more videos, visit this link to PETA:
http://www.petatv.com/circ.html