On March 5, the 44-year-old rhinoceros Tsavo died in Circus “Krone” in Munich, Germany. He suffered from digestive problems for a long time and had lost 300 kilos in two months. The white rhino was the last of its kind to be displayed in a German travel circus. For the past forty years it has been kept under miserable conditions for entertainment.

Tsavo was condemned to a life of loneliness for economic reasons. As so often in the circus industry, he had to entertain the audience almost to the last breath in the ring.

Tsavo – Stations of a passion

Tsavo was probably born in the late 1970s in a South African national park in freedom, before he came in 1978 as a tomboy to Germany.
Since 2008, the rhinoceros bull was at Circus Krone, Germany, previously he was put on show for decades in the Circus “Barum”, also Germany.
Although rhinos are loners in nature, they also have contact with conspecifics, at least during the mating season. However, for decades Tsavo was kept in complete isolation and deprived of all social contacts – he died lonely.

The animal welfare organization “Four Paws” has no words of comfort for the Circus “Krone” left after the death of the rhinoceros bull Tsavo, on the contrary!

Despite the massive weight loss, the rhino has been on tour with the Circus until recently, according to a statement.

“Tsavo was gawped and applauded, standing on bare concrete for days, carting from town to town in a small wagon, even though he was always surrounded by humans, he died alone, because he did not know any fellows,” says Thomas Pietsch of “four paws”Organisation.

The association renews in the statement the demand to the Federal Government after a keeping-ban of wild animals: Proper attitude is not possible in a driving enterprise. A modern and contemporary circus must be able to do without animals.

The veterinary specialist for zoo and wildlife, Lendl, is nevertheless convinced: “There was certainly some disease under it that we could not find.” She suspects a “mechanical obstacle” such as a tumor or intestinal entanglement. To find the exact cause of death, the carcass is now being autopsied in animal pathology – which may take weeks due to size.

For those affected by Circus “Krone”, Tsavo’s death is like that of a family member (!!!), Lendl said. It may be a comfort to them that Tsavo has been stable and painless in the past few days!!!

In its already third Resolution, the Federal Council called for a ban on circus wildlife, which the Federal Government has not yet met. In 27 European countries, including for example Belgium, Austria, the Netherlands and Greece, certain or all species are no longer allowed in the circus, while in Germany species such as giraffes, primates and even hippos in circus operations are subjected to constant stress on trucks. According to a representative forsa survey conducted in May 2014, 82 percent of Germans believe that wildlife can not be kept in a species-appropriate manner in the circus. The Federal Chamber of Veterinary Medicine is also in favor of a ban.

https://wildbeimwild.com/2019/03/05/trauriges-leben-in-isolation/

My comment: Apart from many countries in Europe, Bolivia, China, Costa Rica Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, India, Israel, Colombia, Mexico, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, Singapore (so-called “third world countries”) have already banned the carrying of certain species of wild animals in circuses.
Germany continues to lag behind.

Because circus companies repeatedly violate the Animal Welfare Act, many cities and towns are trying to limit the performance of circuses in their catchment area.
Although the Federal Council already voted in favor of a wildlife ban in 2003 and 2011, the Federal Government has failed to introduce such a ban for years.

The incompetent politicians simply let the circus animals down.

And until the German politicians stop protect the tormentors businessmen of the circus,  the elephant will  be tortured to make his ridiculous headstand, the bear will further roll out of fear of the whip on the ball, and the lion will jump through the burning tires, under the threat of the electric shock.
And so they are transported from one place to another until they are dead.

My best regards, Venus

Jill Robinson MBE – Founder – ‘Animals Asia’    https://www.animalsasia.org/

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jill_Robinson 

Dr Jane Goodall – primatologist and anthropologist – https://www.janegoodall.org.uk/ 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jane_Goodall 

International Women’s Day (IWD) is celebrated on March 8 every year. It is a focal point in the movement for women’s rights.

After the Socialist Party of America organized a Women’s Day on February 28, 1909, in New York, the 1910 International Socialist Woman’s Conference suggested a Women’s Day be held annually. After women gained suffrage in Soviet Russia in 1917, March 8 became a national holiday there. The day was then predominantly celebrated by the socialist movement and communist countries until it was adopted in 1975 by the United Nations.

Today, International Women’s Day is a public holiday in some countries and largely ignored elsewhere.  In some places, it is a day of protest; in others, it is a day that celebrates womanhood.

Free Her Now !

Say NO to puppy mills in China.

We are all fully aware of how China regards its animals.

As if puppy mills are not bad enough; imagine what a Chinese puppy mill is like !

Please support this petition calling for a ban on puppy mills in China.

Petition Link – https://www.sosvox.org/en/petition/no-to-the-puppy-mills-in-china.html?utm_source=highlight&utm_medium=title&utm_campaign=campaign-p060319

Petition Wording:

Addressed to: President Xi Jimping

The animals live confined in small cages, surrounded by their own faeces and urine. These places are true dog factories where they give birth until they die, while living a horrible life. The animals suffer a horrible life and end up with mental illnesses that cause them to be constantly turning in their small cages, hitting each other.

Dogs are poorly fed, almost never leave their cages and when they do it is only to be used to impregnate or leave pregnant females, and when they do not serve them anymore, they are killed or abandoned because they are no longer profitable.

Do not condemn dogs to a life of agony, suffering and pain. It is our duty to do something to be respected and their lives saved.

And remember that these places exist because there are people who buy pets, so ADOPT, DON’T SHOP!

… we have to be courageous and active!

Five minutes were enough to save a life.
Everyone has five minutes,
but not everyone sees it as a moral duty to rescue animals in distress..

Once again, I remember the well-known saying of ALF … “saving an animal does not change the whole world, but for this animal the whole world changes”!

Respect and thanks to the lifesavers!

My best regards, Venus

WAV Comment  – watched the CEO of Greggs on the tv this morning; and he said that from their experience, people were moving away from meat towards plant based foods.  This is reflected in their massive profits – the largest ever; partly thanks to the Vegan sausage roll.  Brits hate intensive animal cruelty, and are now doing something about it by throwing out meat and changing to plant based.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-47480247

Greggs vegan sausage roll boosts sales

Greggs has credited the fanfare around the launch of its vegan sausage roll for driving a sharp rise in sales.

The bakery chain said the publicity the snack gained helped sales surge 9.6% in the seven weeks to 16 February.

The snack, made from meat substitute quorn, launched at the start of the year, coinciding with Veganuary when many people go vegan for a month.

The update on current trading came as the firm said annual sales had broken through £1bn for the first time.

Chief executive Roger Whiteside said Greggs had spent “millions of pounds” transforming how people perceived the chain.

“We want people to reappraise us and understand we’ve moved on from being a pure bakery business to offering people food on the go,” he told the BBC’s Today programme.

People wanting “healthier food options” could now find them at the chain, he said.

• Greggs and the ‘sausage roll’ masterstroke

Mr Whiteside said the chain, which has already held one-off evening openings for events such as Valentine’s Day, was also “looking to move into the evening food market”.

Greggs now has 1,953 stores across the UK, and Mr Whiteside said it planned to get to 2,000 stores by the end of the year.

Pre-tax profit last year rose 15% to £82.6m, marking the fifth year in a row that profits have increased.

The firms’s shares have almost doubled in value since July last year.

“There’s a lot to like about Greggs – it’s a publicity machine, recession-proof, and has a knack for adapting to consumer habits,” said Arlene Ewing, Investment Manager at Brewin Dolphin.

Much of the chain’s success has been driven by savvy marketing.

The ad campaign for its vegan sausage roll has been called “a master class in public relations” by the industry magazine PR Week.

Journalists were sent vegan rolls in mock iPhone packaging and stores sold sausage roll phone cases.

Publicity surrounding the campaign exploded when Piers Morgan, presenter of ITV’s Good Morning Britain, criticised the new snack, calling Greggs “PC-ravaged clowns” in a tweet.

When daytime TV host Piers Morgan poured scorn on the vegan sausage roll, Greggs’ social media team was ready to roll.

“Oh hello Piers, we’ve been expecting you,” was the immediate tweet, a James Bond-inspired, gently droll putdown that was the perfect riposte.

Greggs marketing and social media may be quirky and fun, but there is a deadly serious intent behind it – to push customers into what the company calls a “reappraisal” – a realisation that Greggs is no longer just a bakery chain, but a fast-food and even dining proposition that competes with everyone from McDonald’s to Patisserie Valerie.

Come to try the vegan sausage roll, and come back when you realise the coffee is cheap and (hopefully) not disgusting.

This hard work is evident in the results – a decent increase in pre-tax profits, and, best of all for investors, the prospect of a special extra dividend later in the year.