Garden Bros. Circus banned from animal use following PETA appeal

For immediate release:
May 14, 2021

Contact:
David Pearl 202-483-7382

Norfolk, Virginia. – After PETA notified the city’s animal welfare department of Garden Bros. Circus to perform with animals this weekend, officials have confirmed that the circus will not be allowed to use animals. A city ordinance requires traveling animal shows to obtain permission at least 30 days in advance.

“Successful circuses are switching to show that only wants performers, and that’s exactly what Garden Bros. will have to do in Norfolk, ”says Rachel Matthews, director of PETA’s animal captivity enforcement. “Every city, country and venue that rejects animal action is helping PETA move circuses towards an animal-free future.”

In 2018, Norfolk banned Garden Bros. to use elephants and not allowed to use a horse with a puffy eye. The city also blocked the circus from using animals in 2017 and from using elephants in 2016.

In 2018, officials in Massachusetts barred Garden Bros. use an underweight horse in performances, and officials in Missouri blamed the guides for keeping elephants, camels and ponies on hot tarmac without shade. In a 2017 whistleblower complaint, a former Garden Bros. described how he often saw elephants dripping from their ears and reported that the guide beat, beat and kicked the camel after the performance. A trainer was also caught, who repeatedly spoiled the llama.

In 2020, after years of pressure from PETA, Garden Bros. stopped forcing elephants to perform, but still exploit horses, dogs and camels.

Many other places and locations across the country, including California, Connecticut, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, New York, South Carolina, Vermont, Virginia, and Washington, DC, have canceled the Garden Bros. circus from performances with animals.

PETA, whose motto is in part that “the animals are not ours to be used for entertainment” – opposes arrogance, a worldview focused on human superiority. For more information please visit PETA.org or subscribe to the group on Twitter, Facebook, or Instagram…