When adults take their children to the circus, they expect them to be hypnotized. What is there to keep a child from being captivated? Between the dazzling lights, large amount of animals, and entertaining clowns everywhere, the circus is a great experience for any child. While the tigers jump through hoops of fire, the elephants prepare to exit into the center ring. The audience goes wild and the children scream with excitement. Before the elephants begin their walk towards the ring, the trainers, behind the scenes, give them one last blow with their hooks. An elephant trumpets in pain as the hook cuts into its skin. While all this is happening, a lion is trapped in a cage backstage with just enough room to turn around. Does this sound like the fun and joyful circus we are all accustomed to? Unfortunately, the answer is no. Circuses around the world severely mistreat their animals, away from public view, in terms of housing/environment, training methods and performances. Circuses around the world are getting away with it because the Animal Welfare Act is not strict enough when it comes to their guidelines for the circus industry. The famous Ringling Brothers and Barnum & Bailey Circus claim they have done nothing abusive to their animals, even though they have been filmed countless times by hidden video cameras. The Animal Welfare Act does not reach the standards it should and needs to be amended to enforce stricter rules on training methods, housing and unnatural behavior at shows. Ringling Brothers and Barnum & Bailey Circus continually attract attention for the mistreatment of their animals. . However, the funny thing is that they deny mistreatment...... middle of paper......minimum requirements. “The law does not protect animals in circuses. It's up to the public to say, 'Enough is enough'" (Newkirk). The Animal Welfare Act needs to be reformed to provide more adequate housing/environment, stricter regulations on training methods, and policies on the adoption of unnatural behaviors. With a reform of the animal protection law, the entire circus industry would be forced to change its practices. It's time we gave the main stars of the show a break. Works Cited “3 important reasons not to take children to the circus”. Cirques.com. PETA. Internet. December 10, 2009. “Animal circuses, animal suffering. » Captiveanimals.org. CAPS, June 2001. Web. December 10, 2009. Newkirk, Ingrid E. “People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals.” » July 27, 2009. SIRS Knowledge Source. Internet. December 10, 2009. “Ringling vs. Reality.” Cirques.com. PETA. Internet. December 10. 2009.