The Shrine Circus is coming to Augusta, and of course we want children to have fun and organizations like the Shriners to be able to raise funds for charity. However, none of this should come at the expense of suffering of animals in the circus.

Harsh training methods such as gouging elephants with bullhooks and whipping tigers are used to instill fear in exotic animals that have no natural desire to perform for humans. It’s also impossible to provide quality of life for these animals in a traveling circus. Tigers can’t be allowed to relax and roam an outdoor area on days when they aren’t performing; no fence is high enough to contain them. Elephants must live in cramped conditions that are nothing like their natural habitat.

Please skip the circus this year and ask the Shriners to provide cruelty-free entertainment that we can all support in the future.

Tom Lyon

New Era, Michigan