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About Cottage Grove sentinel. (Cottage Grove, Or.) 1909-current | View Entire Issue (May 22, 2019)
COTTAGE GROVE SENTINEL | WEDNESDAY, MAY 22, 2019 | 11A Circus from A1 McMahan handed out a list of United States De- partment of Agriculture (USDA) citations and an- imal safety concerns asso- ciated with Culpepper & Merriweather which dated back to 1991. Among the reasons listed for citations were infringements such as inadequate barriers, in- stances of lack of adequate veterinary care, failure to provide adequate shelter from the sun and failures to maintain records. The packet also docu- ments an instance in 2000 when two elephants es- caped the circus in Yucca Valley, Calif., stomping one circus worker and frightening citizens in the city. The list of citations, all of which could not be inde- pendently verifi ed by The Sentinel as of press time, were compiled by People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA), an animal rights organiza- tion which has attracted controversy for its some- times-radical methods of protest and propaganda, though McMahan claimed no affi liation with the group. A USDA court docket does show, however, that in 2011, Judge Janice K. Bullard suspended Culpep- per & Merriweather’s Ani- mal Welfare Act license for six months after she found the circus “willfully failed to develop a plan for vet- PHOTOS BY DAMIEN SHERWOOD/COTTAGE GROVE SENTINEL Performances included the Perez Family (above) pulling off a breath-taking balancing act on the Wheel of Destiny and jungle cat trainer Trey Key (right) convincing Francis the Lion to stick out his tongue. erinary care” and allowed a tiger cub to be “hand-raised in a capricious manner that led to poor nutrition.” “It’s not about getting rid of the circus,” said pro- testor Rylee Smelser. “It’s about getting rid of the ani- mals and the abuse.” McMahan also empha- sized that, while she would love to see the circus, her concern was with animals being kept outside their natural environments. “Horses, poodles, all of those domestic animals — good. Wild animals — bad,” she said. “We would love to see these specifi c cats released to a sanctuary where they can live out the rest of their natural lives with proper veterinary care.” Trey Key, general man- ager of the circus and per- former and trainer of the big cats, played down the list of citations. “It’s an embellishment of our USDA record,” Key said. “Those citations are civil offenses — they are not criminal offenses of animal cruelty.” Davis Shows N.W. Carnival Bohemia Park Key pointed to the com- pany’s most recent citation as being a simple paper- work violation in which a signature was missing. “You are not allowed to redefi ne ‘animal cruelty’ as ‘animals in entertain- ment,’” Key said. “If you disagree with it, that’s fi ne. Don’t go to the show.” Of the two tigers and lion, Key said they were procured 14 years ago from a Texas zoo which had been neglectful of the animals. “Those animals were born in east Texas,” he said. “These are domesti- cally bred animals. There’s nothing wild about them. They’re exotic, yes, but they are not wild.” Key resented implica- tions that his big cats were being mistreated. “I don’t treat them like replacement animals,” he said. “They are as much family to me as my wife or mom.” Key pointed to Califor- nia as having particularly stringent rules in regards to animal welfare and, as the circus had just come through the state, condi- tions were demonstrably above board. “If there were something wrong with the way they were being kept, don’t you think between the public seeing us every day and authorities inspecting us in a place like California … don’t you think California would’ve found it by now,” he asked. Acton added that the company is inspected reg- ularly by state, federal and local authorities, including veterinary visits once ev- ery 30 days on top of ran- dom pop-ups. “We always invite folks to come by in the morning for our tour and see for themselves the conditions the happy animals are kept in,” he said. Despite the handful of protesters at the circus entrance, Key estimated nearly 1,000 people turned out for the production, which was good news for circus sponsor Coast Fork Kiwanis Club. “Everyone seems to be having a good time,” said the club’s past president Don Gould. “We’re proud to bring the circus to Cot- tage Grove.” The Kiwanis Club is also working in partnership with Court Appointed Spe- cial Advocates, a nonprofi t which advocates for chil- dren in foster care. A por- tion of the proceeds from the circus ticket sales are funneled toward a Christ- mas event at the end of the year. “This the third or fourth time we’ve worked with the Kiwanis Club,” Key said, estimating that rough- ly 98 percent of the towns they stop in provide similar local sponsorship. Gould confi rmed that fundraising this year was looking positive. “It’s much more success- ful that previous years,” he said. May 30 – June 2, 2019 Get your Pre-sale Armband coupon today and Save. $20.00 each or $25.00 at the Gate *Good For One Armband per ticket on any One Day. 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