Animal Defenders International - Animals in Entertainment

Animals in Entertainment

Stop Circus Suffering is ADI’s global campaign against the use of animals in circuses. ADI, through country-specific investigations, has contributed to the passing of animal rights laws, with Bolivia passing a law to ban both wild and domestic animal acts in all circuses; Brazil voting to introduce a similar ban and similar legislation under consideration in Colombia and Peru.

In the UK, ADI is lobbying the Department for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs to introduce a ban on the use of “certain non-domesticated animals” in traveling circuses in line with DEFRA's 2006 promise to introduce an Act.

ADI’s investigation into the use of animals in circuses in the UK and Europe in 1998, resulting in the first-ever footage of behind-the-scenes abuse of circus animals, resulted in the prosecution of international animal trainer (and Hollywood animal supplier) Mary Chipperfield, her husband Roger Cawley and their elephant keeper ‘Steve’ Gills. Chipperfield was filmed beating a baby chimpanzee, whilst Cawley and Gills were filmed beating elephants at their headquarters in Hampshire, England. This resulted in the collapse of the UK animal circus industry, and a wholescale move over to human-only circuses. Only a few circuses remained with wild animals.

The Stop Circus Suffering campaign is also active across Europe (Greece, Ireland, Portugal and Norway), and the US.

In 2008, ADI released the findings of an undercover investigation of 9 US circuses, and exposed the beatings of elephants by trainer Mike Swain, at Bailey Brothers Circus. The USDA contacted Swain but took no further action. ADI is pursuing this.

After a long campaign, in 2002 CITES (Conference of Parties to the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species) introduced new regulations for live traveling exhibitions introducing a ‘passport style’ system. ADI first pressed for this tightening up of the rules on circuses in 1997, after exposing a circus in Africa as an animal trafficking front.

As well as its major campaigning activities on animal circuses, ADI also campaigns against the use of animals in advertising, television, films and video. Companies dropping advertising campaigns featuring animals include Toyota, Bombay Sapphire Gin, GMB Union and Careerbuilder. For ADI’s My Mate’s a Primate campaign – which highlights the threats and exploitation of primates as a result of the bushmeat trade, in entertainment, the pet trade and in experiments – a TV advert was produced in which a young actress highlighted the suffering of chimpanzees in advertising. In the UK, the advert was banned on the grounds that it was “political”. ADI’s challenge against the ban – which prevents advertising by animal, environmental and human rights organizations – has now moved to the European Court of Human Rights.

In 2011 ADI contacted American Humane Association (AHA), asking them to re-evaluate how they assess the use of animals in films and the statements being made which effectively endorse the use of performing animals. This came after they learned that Tai, the elephant star of the film Water For Elephants was abused prior to the movie, even though AHA gave the film their “No Animals Were Harmed” in the making certification.