THE BALLOON MAN

 

L.A. City Council moves toward vote to ban circus elephants
By Dana Bartholomew, Staff Writer
from:  contracostatimes.com
November 22, 2012
Los Angeles took a step this week to potentially ban elephants at Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus and other traveling circus shows.

The city's Personnel and Animal Welfare Committee on Tuesday recommended a full vote by the City Council on the proposed prohibition of traveling circus elephants and the sharp implements used to control them.

The measure, drafted by Los Angeles Animal Services, allows the council to choose between a full ban of pachyderms, a prohibition of so-called bullhooks, or both.

The 2-0 vote followed expert testimony and a video documenting brutal treatment of circus elephants.

"Frankly, it made my blood boil," said Councilman Paul Koretz, who heads the committee, in a statement. "The video was shot undercover and it showed traveling circus elephants being struck viciously with a bullhook, over and over again, for no apparent reason."

Animal welfare activists celebrated the decision they said could lead to the banishment of cruel elephant practices in Los Angeles. A state judge this year banned the use of bullhooks at the Los Angeles Zoo.

"This is great news for elephants who are forced to perform in traveling circuses," said Catherine Doyle, the Los Angeles-based director of science, research and advocacy for the Performing Animal Welfare Society, which has a sanctuary for former circus elephants in Northern California. "Los Angeles considers itself a progressive city, and this will take us to the next level."
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http://www.contracostatimes.com/california/ci_22045776/l-city-council-moves-toward-vote-ban-circus