Back to a life of exploitation for Asian Elephants Shelly and Marie...

Gail Swainson Staff Reporter Jun 18, 2009

Shriners show goes on, with the Big Top beasts
Newmarket relents, votes to allow circus animals

In the end, after days of intense legal battles and last-minute deal brokering, the show – with elephants – did indeed go on.

Asian elephants Shelly and Marie took centre stage yesterday afternoon with the Shrine Circus at Newmarket's Ray Twinney Recreation Complex, blissfully unaware of all the turmoil their presence had sparked.

The pair of pachyderms was at the centre of a dust-up pitting the town of Newmarket against Xentel DM Inc. – which operates the circus for the Shriners – over the use of performing animals.

Newmarket town council had tried to keep the elephants, seven Arabian horses and 10 dogs out of the ring, saying the multi-use recreation complex was not an appropriate or safe venue for the animals.

(--continued from home page--) Newmarket town council had tried to keep the elephants, seven Arabian horses and 10 dogs out of the ring, saying the multi-use recreation complex was not an appropriate or safe venue for the animals.

Xentel officials responded by taking the town to court this week, and Superior Court Justice Michael Brown ruled in their favour, saying the town erred in its decision.

But Brown stopped short of issuing a court order allowing the performance to go ahead, leaving lawyers on both sides scrambling to strike a deal.

Yesterday morning, hours before the first performance, Newmarket council called an emergency session and voted 4-3 to allow the animals if Xentel met certain criteria.

These included having the elephants moved off site before 11 p.m. yesterday and having a $5 million insurance policy in place.

Newmarket Regional Councillor John Taylor, who voted against the deal, said he feels the town still had "valid operational concerns.

"That facility is not a proper one for such use," Taylor said.

Xentel spokesman Len Wolstenholme said the circus would comply with the conditions, "but why weren't we having this conversation with them in March, instead of at the last minute?" he asked.

Several animal-rights activists silently protested outside the complex before yesterday's show.

The afternoon show attracted a thin crowd of several hundred, mostly kids and their parents.

It was, for the most part, standard-issue, old-style circus fare, with jugglers, clowns, acrobats, death-defying aerial acts and lots of scantily clad lovelies.

There was a loud "Oooh!" from the crowd when six white Arabian horses – their manes and tails a-sparkle – trotted into the ring.

Shelly and Marie performed as circus elephants always have. They put their massive feet on a small, silver stool and slowly spun around, and they sat down while raising their front feet and trunks.

Drew Williams of Newmarket brought her two young daughters and their friend to the early show.

Asked whether she thought elephants should perform in a circus, Williams responded, "Not really.

"But the kids really love it."

Taylor says the town still doesn't want circus animals at the complex and intends to create a policy that will hold up in court.

Click here to read the entire story online at thestar.com