.
Link to Animal Liberation (WA) Inc - Home Page .jpg

Stardust Circus
November 2002
         
 

Stardust Circus - Ashfield Reserve, Bassendean, Western Australia

Page 1 | Page 2 | Page 3 | Page 4 | Page 5 | Page 6 | Page 7

One thing you are almost guaranteed to see at a circus these days are signs on the cages saying that "this animal is ** generation born in captivity".

As such you are expected to believe that the animal knows no different, and therefore it is ok to keep them in captiviy, and deny them the right to express their natural instincts. That same argument was used to justify the keeping of slaves.

Some interesting information on Elephants

The Elephant Vocalisation Project
Elephants have a language

Cats and dogs are examples of animals that have been bred in captivity for thousands of years (and hundreds of generations), yet quickly revert to natural instincts when released from human domination.

Whether an animal knows no different or not is irrelevant - the animal should be allowed to express its natural instincts; be it running for miles, climbing the jungle trees or dust bathing. Animals are not here for human entertainment, they exist with the right to live their lives as that animal.

To deny them this freedom is wrong.

Animal Liberation welcomes the assistance of specialist campaign groups such as CircusWatch WA.
Please note: CircusWatchWA is a seperate organisation from Animal Liberation (WA) Inc - please do not contact CircusWatch WA for matters other than circus issues.

see Court Case story |  see Arna's story | Last Year

Late News - Arna appeal upheld in NSW courts

Dec 2002 - City of Perth rejects Stardust application for 2003

Click here for PDF list of incidents/accidents involving circuses in Australia

Pages 1 - 4 cover Friday 1st November 2002, Opening Night.

Arna digging at the reserve lawn (left) and eating tufts of it (below). We couldn't see any food for her apart from some remnants of hay lying around, there didn't appear to be any water for her.

- Click on any photo for large image in new window -
Arna is an Asian elephant in her 40's and has been kept as a solitary elephant since her partner died over 5 years ago, this is despite offers from 2 free range zoos to accommodate her with other elephants. This is also in direct contravention of the Exhibited Animals Act of NSW (NSW is the home state of Stardust Circus which is one of the family of circuses owned and operated by Lennon Brothers - other circuses are Lennon Bros and Burtons). She is in poor physical conditon and has poor muscle tone due to insufficient exercise and lack of company of other elephants.

Left is the enclosure she has; not the ribboned wire fence, the electric one further inside - makes it a pretty poor sized exercise area for such a large animal.

Arna' shelter (right) is the same whether it's in the heat of the north or the cold of the south.

It is also her transport (left). We did see some bales of hay in the rear of the truck. Still couldn't see a water supply for her. Hay is not her natural diet, she is a jungle dweller and as such would eat a wide variety of plant matter - something else she is denied.
       
Not really what you could call a great life for such a large, social, herd based animal - trucked around the country, with little free access to food and water as in the wild (or in a free range zoo), limited exercise areas and no companion members of her own species.
       
         
         
         
         
Top        
Link to Joraen - website design .gif