One Voice has long been opposed to the slavery of animals in circuses. Thanks to its awareness of current legislation and close partnership with the authorities, the association has enabled several animals held illegally to be released. Once in suitable structures, they can begin to live again.
Achille the chimpanzee
Achille is a chimpanzee who was 36 years old when he was spotted in a small cage at the Amar circus in 1999. Without the intervention of One Voice – which carried out its first rescue – he would surely have died that winter. Bought from a zoo 30 years earlier, he had never left his 3m² prison because he was considered too aggressive. The circus did not have an aptitude certificate for his species. So, he could be seized. Nevertheless, we first had to find a structure to take him. This was not without difficulty, as there are many primates in the world seeking shelter. Finally the Ape Foundation in the Netherlands agreed to take him. He found peace in his Dutch sanctuary where he was able to enjoy life as a chimpanzee…
Vicky the elephant
In January 2006, an elephant was saved from the circus for the first time in France. Thanks to One Voice’s intervention, Vicky, a 42-year old elephant, was seized in January. After being sought in Germany, she was finally located in the Paris area. Hidden in a truck that had no heating, in the dark and chained up 24 hours a day, her life was in danger. One of her legs was paralysed because of the unnatural positions she was forced to adopt and her trunk had been damaged by her trainer hitting it. Her muscles had wasted away, she had numerous wounds and had stereotypical movements, meaning that she required emergency intervention. Close collaboration with the authorities enabled us to intervene rapidly. Today Vicky is back to full health and lives in a large enclosure with another elephant at Gdansk zoo in Poland.
Animals victims of the circus
Circuses have little consideration for animals which reproduce easily. Most of them are piled on top of one another in trailers and some do not even take part in shows (which is forbidden by law). Many circuses do not have aptitude certificates for these species. One Voice has therefore been able to rescue several of them. In February 2005, Simba the lioness was rescued from a cage measuring just 1m² where she had been locked up continuously without taking part in any shows. Maomie the tigress was released in March 2006 after ten years of forced exhibition. Both of them found refuge in an animal sanctuary in France. In October 2006, after proceedings lasting more than a year, it was the turn of Nala and Shada, two lionesses, and Djunka a lion to be freed from the darkness of their trailer. They had to be sent to South Africa for their retirement, which was made possible by a partnership with the Born Free Foundation.
More recently, in December 2007, after two and a half years’ struggle, One Voice obtained the release of Brutus the lion. Once again, thanks to the support of the animal assistance foundation and the SPA, Brutus will end his days in South Africa…
Working up the chain
It costs over €15 000 to rescue a lion, not including the years of work vital to obtain the confiscation of an animal. Yet a lion cub is only worth €500 to a circus. The animals that are seized are often replaced without any change in living conditions or any upgrade in standards required by law. What’s more, for an animal to be seized there must be a structure ready to take him. Unfortunately, shelters, sanctuaries and even zoos are now full to bursting point and cannot take any more saved animals. The only way out for these slaves from the circus is therefore through general awareness of the situation. Only a refusal by the public to attend this type of show will enable us to stem the flow of births and end this cruel practice.
