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Annie the elephant sparks protests
From the archive, first published Tuesday 11th Oct 2005.
THE circus has come to town - complete with clowns and showgirls and performing Shetland ponies, poodles and parrots.
But the biggest star of them all is Annie the elephant.
And it is her appearance that has left the Bobby Roberts Circus facing complaints.
The circus is one of the few in the country that still uses animals.
The Captive Animalsí Protection Society (CAPS) and the Manchester Animal Protection Society (MAPS) say they will be staging a protest outside the circus near Farnworth this week. They want the elephant to be sent to a sanctuary. The circus says it is "surprised and saddened" by the campaign.
A spokesman said Annie was a part of their family, and has been retired from the circus ring for some time.
The elephant appears for just a few minutes in the interval so that visitors can have their photo taken with her.
Craig Redmond, campaigns officer for CAPS, said: "It's time to end the use of animals in circuses, and we encourage the Bobby Roberts Circus to follow others by having only human acts.
"The human performers can choose to be there; the animals have no choice.
"There is one very simple thing that anyone concerned for animal welfare can do, and that is to avoid all animal circuses."
He said his organisation received more complaints about the Bobby Roberts Circus than any other British circus, as it was the only one touring Britain with an elephant and one of the few still to use animals such as horses.
The Sunday Mirror launched an appeal this summer to rescue the 52-year-old elephant.
Bobby Roberts said: "Allegations made by tabloid newspapers about Annieís health, claiming she is in constant pain, are totally unfounded and completely untrue.
"We have a large amount of veterinary evidence which completely refutes this claim. Additionally, claims that Annie is still performing are entirely fictional.
"Annie is retired from the circus ring and has been for some time."
Mr Robert said arguments over the rights and wrongs of performing animals in the circus were not the issue in Annie's case.
He added: "Our opinion is that if Annie was taken away from her familiar surroundings and the company of those she loves, she would quite simply pine away and die.
"It would be a most unkind separation which would be far more detrimental to her well-being than continuing the way of life which she has known for many years.î
The circus was at New Hill Farm, off Manchester Road (A6), near Farnworth, from Tuesday.
Also among the acts are jugglers on horseback, springboard acrobats and Arabian stallions.
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