Report for Community Services Committee September 29, 2003 Meeting

Regulation of Non-Domesticated Animals Used in Circuses and Fairs

Motion on the Floor:

MOVED R. Hayter – D. Thiele (made at the March 25, 2003, City Council meeting):

That the Mayor, on behalf of City Council, write to the Honourable
M. Cardinal, Minister of Sustainable Resource Development, and request that the Provincial Government revive its current inactive Animal Welfare Standards Review Committee.

Recommendation:

That the Motion on the Floor be passed.
That the letter (Attachment 2 of the September 12, 2003, Planning and Development Department report) from Mayor B. Smith, on behalf of City Council, to the Honourable M. Cardinal, Minister of Sustainable Resource Development, include the recommendations prepared by stakeholders.

Report Summary

This report provides specific suggestions on housing and care standards for performing animals used in circuses and travelling shows, to be forwarded to the Alberta Government for consideration.

Previous Council/Committee Action

At the March 25, 2003, City Council meeting, the above motion was referred to Administration for a report to consult with the stakeholder representatives including: circuses, the Al Shamal Shriners, animal protection agencies such as the Edmonton SPCA, Voice For Animals and Zoocheck Canada Inc., and Northlands Park. Administration was to report back to City Council through the Community Services Committee.

Report

· Administration organized and facilitated a meeting with the six above listed organizations. Consensus was reached on a number of recommendations. Additional recommendations were proposed that did not achieve consensus. The process and outcomes of the meeting are described in Attachment 1.

· A draft letter from Mayor B. Smith, on behalf of City Council, to the Honourable M. Cardinal, Minister of Sustainable Resource Development, was distributed at the meeting. It is shown in Attachment 2.

Justification of Recommendation

The Administration recommends that the Honourable M. Cardinal, Minister of Sustainable Resource Development, be provided with the recommendations of the stakeholder groups and asked to reconvene the Animal Welfare Standards Review Committee. Administration believes that this is the most effective way of providing improved conditions for circus animals for the following reasons:

· The recommendations of the City of Edmonton’s stakeholder meeting will lead to meaningful improvements only if they are accepted by the Provincial Government (the Province), since the Province is the mandated authority for these issues.

· The Province has previously done significant work on animal care standards with a wide group of stakeholders.

· The Animal Welfare Standards Review Committee includes representation from more sectors than the City of Edmonton can bring together.

· The Province has done all preliminary work and only needs to reconvene this group.

The attached draft letter advises the Honourable M. Cardinal, Minister of Sustainable Resource Development, of City Council’s decision.

Background Information Attached

Summary of the process used to convene and hold the stakeholder meeting; and the recommendations resulting from the meeting
A draft letter from Mayor B. Smith to the Honourable M. Cardinal, Minister of Sustainable Resource Development

(Page 2 of 2)

Attachment 1

Performing Animals in Circuses and Travelling Shows

The meeting of representatives of the six stakeholder groups and administration staff was held August 21, 2003. Those attending were:

Al Shamal Shriners Allan Frado, Bill Boone

Edmonton Humane Society (S.P.C.A.) Ardice Fleck, Cst. Robin Soutar

Feld Entertainment/Ringling Bros. Thomas Albert

Northlands Park Cheryl Schneider

Voice For Animals Tove Reece, Pat Tacail

Zoocheck Canada Kim Robinson, Marilyn Cole

City of Edmonton Mark Garrett, David Leeb

Preparation for the meeting included a request from the administration for written recommendations to be submitted a month prior to the meeting date. A complete package of all written submissions was distributed to each participating group three weeks prior to the meeting. An agenda was distributed several days before the meeting. To clarify the intended purpose and outcome of this session a sample of a letter from Mayor Bill Smith to the Province, with the recommendations resulting from this meeting was distributed and discussed.

The session was structured to focus primarily on recommendations relevant to the five topics listed in the Council motion of February 11, 2003: Exercise, Medical Attention, Public Safety, Sanitation and Transportation. An additional heading entitled ‘Other’ was included. At the meeting each group in turn noted its written recommendations on a common sheet and then everyone had an opportunity to read recommendations by all others and indicate agreement or disagreement. These suggestions were then sorted in order of greater to lesser group support and discussed. Several themes appeared repeatedly and were combined into one. Teams consisting of several groups working in collaboration rewrote recommendations that were close to acceptance. Wording was amended to better reflect the intent. Finally the results were collated and sent out to all participant groups for corroboration and comment.

The outcomes are presented below:

Consensus was reached on the following recommendations

MEDICAL ATTENTION:

1. All circuses and traveling shows with performing animals must provide and maintain a current health certificate for each animal as required by provincial or federal regulations, stating that the animals are free of tuberculosis and any other diseases to which such regulations apply.

2. All circuses and travelling shows with performing animals must maintain and have available upon request of proper authorities recent medical histories for each animal, including records of vaccinations as required by provincial or federal law.

PUBLIC SAFETY:

1. The Province of Alberta will develop safety regulations for circuses and travelling shows with performing animals that anticipate and address all possible risks to staff, the public and animals. These plans will be developed in consultation with, but not limited to the following groups:

· Humane societies

· Animal welfare groups

· Circus contractors

· Experts on captive animal husbandry

· Circus representatives

· Representatives from municipal, provincial, and federal government

2. Circuses and travelling shows with performing animals visiting Alberta must develop and implement safety plans that meet the regulations outlined by the above group.

3. The animals are treated humanely in control procedures if the animal escapes or the trainer loses control.

OTHER:

Proper authorities, such as Humane Society Constables, may inspect animals in circuses and travelling shows at any time of day any day of the week.

The following recommendations did not achieve consensus and are included here for information.

EXERCISE:

1. Animals receive two hours of enrichment per day, including exercise, larger cages, activities and toys.

2. There is no possibility for adequate exercise in a travelling environment.

MEDICAL ATTENTION:

1. Full time veterinarian will travel with the circus.

2. Veterinary assistance is provided through the local S.P.C.A at, before, during, and after performances by request.

3. Animal trainers must have a veterinarian present or a local veterinarian on call.

PUBLIC SAFETY:

1. The use of wild animals is prohibited in the safety regulations that are developed.

SANITATION:

1. Premises are kept clean and in good repair with provisions for removal and disposal of animal and food waste, bedding, trash and debris.

2. Primary enclosures must be cleaned and sanitised regularly as appropriate to minimise disease hazards.

3. A government inspector will travel with the circus/travelling show at all times.

TRANSPORTATION:

1. All animals are transported according to U.S.D.A. (United States Department of Agriculture) regulations and existing S.P.C.A. standards.

2. Adjust the time of year for the circuses to travel so animals are not risking exposure to freezing temperatures.

3. No vehicle could be designed that would satisfy the animals’ biological and psychological needs in a permanent travelling environment.

OTHER:

1. No force to be used to make animals perform.

2. S.P.C.A. inspectors receive training on the psychological, behavioural, and physical well being of wild and exotic animal species.

3. Regulate duration of the animals’ performance. Provide a minimum required rest period.

4. Animal husbandry standards must take into account the psychological and physical needs of individual species, e.g. space, noise, nutritional requirements.

Zoocheck Canada and Voice for Animals believe that since animals should not be used at all in travelling shows, support for any incremental changes would not only undermine this position but also would not significantly improve the lot of the animals. In fact, it would be doing a grave disservice to the animals as it might give the impression that something constructive had been done to help, when in fact nothing has changed. On this principle, they did not support the following recommendations from the above list:

1. All animals are transported according to U.S.D.A. (United States Department of Agriculture) regulations and existing S.P.C.A. standards.

2. Animals receive two hours of enrichment per day, including exercise, larger cages, activities and toys.

3. Premises are kept clean and in good repair with provisions for removal and disposal of animal and food waste, bedding, trash, and debris.

4. Primary enclosures must be cleaned and sanitised regularly as appropriate to minimise disease hazards.

5. Animal husbandry standards must take into account the psychological and physical needs of individual species, e.g. space, noise, nutritional requirements.

Attachment 1 - Page 3 of 3

Attachment 2

Draft Letter from Mayor Bill Smith to Minister Mike Cardinal

The Honourable Mike Cardinal

Minister of Sustainable Resource Development

Province of Alberta

#420, Legislature Building

10800 – 97 Avenue

Edmonton, Alberta

T5K 2B6

Dear Minister Cardinal:

At the beginning of this year Edmonton’s City Council debated concerns about the care of performing animals in circuses and other venues showcasing wild animals. Council did not support an outright ban on such performances, preferring instead to concentrate on standards of care. Council further recognized that if such standards were to be developed they would have little effect if they were adopted by only one City and, therefore, the City of Edmonton has chosen not to have a regulatory bylaw. To have the desired effect, such regulations would need to be established at the provincial or federal government levels.

Towards this purpose, City Council directed the Administration to convene a diverse group of stakeholders to seek consensus on as many aspects of animal care as they could. Council indicated that where consensus was found, those suggestions would be forwarded to the provincial regulator for consideration. This work would complement and complete initiatives already established by your department’s currently inactive Animal Welfare Standards Review Committee.

I am delighted to report that this group has met and reached consensus on a number of important issues. They are attached for your consideration.

City Council also recommends that the Animal Welfare Standards Review Committee be re-activated to consider these recommendations and other related matters. Your consideration of City Council’s decisions is appreciated.