Friday, March 06, 2015

From Thomas Conley

Hello Everyone,
In light of yesterday's announcement by Feld, I can't help but feel sucker-punched. Everyone has worked, fought, educated, and lobbied tirelessly for years, many times at our own detriment and in the face of threats to our safety. Regardless of the reasons for Feld's decision, the outcome is the same. And unfortunately this will be another tool the radical ARs will use against us. To that end, yesterday, I requested a statement from Feld's VP of Government Relations, Thomas Albert, that we could use to combat such claims. Specifically it would need to say that they still believe that elephants on traveling shows are well cared for, and they are in no way against other shows keeping their elephant acts. To his credit, he eventually responded, and sent me this message:



"The decision to phase elephants out of our traveling shows was not an easy one and we understand that it will come as a surprise to many people. This decision is part of a larger plan for Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey, which allows us the flexibility to continue to evolve to meet consumer preferences and demands. Animals have been an integral part of The Greatest Show On Earth for 145 years and our traveling shows will continue to include many of the other animals we currently feature. We care deeply for all of our animals--tigers, camels, dogs, horses -- and will continue to provide excellent care for these different animals as part of the Greatest Show On Earth.

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