By Cynthia Jessup
The Ringling Bros. circus is coming to Fairfax, but it’s the last time for the elephants. The Ringling Bros. have decided to expedite the retirement process for these beloved animals. Out of a total of 41 elephants in the circus, 11 are still touring for the remaining shows. The elephants that will be performing at George Mason University—Asia, April, Mabel, Tonka and Luna—will be retiring May 1 to the Center for Elephant Conservation, the circus’s elephant conservation in Florida.
“Animal rights groups have a philosophical difference with us in that they want to separate animals from people, and we want to showcase the amazing bond that exists between animals and the people they work with every day,” says Steve Payne, vice president of corporate communications at Feld Entertainment Inc., which owns the circus. Animals are consistently named as the top reason to come see Ringling Bros. performances. “We are not in the business of fighting city hall but for entertainment,” says Ryan Henning, handler and presenter of the elephants. “Transporting the animals is challenging as it is, and it’s harder to take care of the animals due the restrictions of each city, even though we meet and surpass the regulations.” With this in mind, the company has decided move toward the conservation, retirement and overall well-being of the elephants.
At the conservation area where the elephants will be enjoying retirement and socializing, the animals are part of a study examining why elephants rarely get cancer, led by Dr. Joshua Schiffman of the Huntsman Cancer Institute. According to the CEC website, finding a correlation will expedite new treatments for pediatric cancers. Because the CEC is the most easily accessible herd, it made sense for Feld Entertainment to support the research. The team has identified a key genetic link, called P53, which helps to protect the elephants from developing cancer. The P53 gene’s role is to police the cells in the body and prevent them from developing cancer. By studying the elephants’ DNA, the team discovered that elephants have 40 copies of the P53 gene while a healthy person has two copies. Through this research, Dr. Schiffman is exploring the relationship of the extra P53 genes.
The elephants will be performing at EagleBank Arena April 14-17. Performers are excited that the circus is moving on, and they are developing new acts that will be debuted next year. Not knowing what will be replacing the elephants, they are hopeful. As Henning says, “they are big shoes to replace.”
