La Piste aux étoiles, a terrestrial hell

These shaking and rattling trucks on the roads with damaged cages, rusty bars, eyes that stare, apathetic animals, even injured or sick ... Welcome to theLa Piste aux étoiles (Pathway to the Stars). In this circus, the very one where the elephant Maya allowed herself to perish before we intervened, many other sequestrated beings continue to suffer.

Images to cry over

For them too, One Voice is mobilizing. It is not because Maya is no longer there that we have released our vigilance ... quite the contrary! We follow closely these misfortunate old companions of hers. These include Nelly and Brigit, two other elephants from Asia, wildcats and baboons. All are enduring hell. Our investigators have reported horrific images of this prison where their most basic needs are flouted. While the monkeys bathe in their garbage almost never cleaned out and only enjoy a vague and dark filthy existence, the felines are confined to tiny screened spaces. They only have a small "ridiculous cage" where tigers and lions are mixed while these species never mix in the wild. As for the elephants, they trample for hours on tarmac floors between two demanding clown performances, both equally physical and psychological. Like other animals, they have no source of activity to relieve the boredom, norto shelter from sight. Their mechanical and repetitive swinging movements betray a common stereotypical behaviour and that of their immense despair.

Failing "specialists"

Images shot by our investigators are now in the hands of experts for new legal actions. In our action for Maya an independent veterinarian working in the circuses and appointed by the Prefect had formally recognized the deplorable living conditions of this elephant. However, one of her colleagues said in another report, at the same time, exactly the opposite and found that Maya was in good form: "She eats, moves, interacts with her environment and her keeper is calm ". This woman had been appointed after we had alerted the Prefecture of Gard how this circus functioned, about the distress of certain animals. What this veterinarian writes about Maya is very disturbing to other people she came to see. A tigress with cancer and a neck injury, for example, did not appear "in a state of suffering" either. Did she minimize each of her observations? Did she not observe correctly due to a lack of training? According to her, in any case, "nothing was abnormal". This type of official attestation, signed by some of these "specialists" who seem to know nothing of pain and suffering before their very eyes, is extremely dangerous for the beings they are supposed to be protecting. Because of their inactivity, these issues are quickly shelved while the horror continues. For Maya, history has proven that she was in great trouble when this graduate of animal medicine certified the opposite. The elephant might be dead today if we did not have her moved to a decent place of retirement. Fortunately, justice has gradually opened its eyes. But this does now make it possible to account for the incompetence of certain "professionals" on which the authorities often rely in order to explain to us that the animals of the circuses are well ... Hence the difficulty of our fight to defend them. But whatever the time it will take to be heard, we will speak for the voiceless! For each and every one of them.