On Monday, March 3, officials in the city of Milford, CT will hold a hearing to consider an ordinance to ban circuses with performing animals.  These discussions are the result of local citizens who have approached members of the Board of Aldermen with their concerns about the care and well-being of performing animals. 

Please contact the following officials to let them know you support circuses that use performing and exotic animals and request that they not support any proposal that would prevent circuses from being able to visit Milford.  Polite e-mails and letters from Milford-area Circus Fans are especially encouraged, including those who have attended circus performances in Milford.  Sample talking points are included at the end of this alert, but please use your own words where possible.

Thank you for your help!

Milford, CT Board of Aldermen:

 Alderman Frank J. Smith

Chair, Ordinances Committee   

fsmith@ci.milford.ct.us

232 Second Avenue, Milford, CT 06460

Alderman Philip J. Vetro

Chair, Board of Alderman            

pvetro@ci.milford.ct.us

10 Carmen Road North, Milford, CT 06460

Benjamin G. Blake, Mayor

City of Milford

Mayor@ci.milford.ct.us

70 W. River Street, Milford, CT 06460

Sample talking points:

The following are suggestions for your correspondence, but please use your own words, and you do not need to include every bullet point.  Please keep all correspondence respectful.

• All circuses are required to have a United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) exhibitor’s license.  USDA conducts regular unannounced inspections of performing animals and their stable areas, and their inspection reports are a matter of public record.
• Circuses and other animal exhibitors are also subject to state and local animal cruelty laws in Milford and the state of Connecticut.  Such regulations provide protection to all performing animals and allow for the prosecution of those who neglect or mistreat the animals in their care.
  
• Millions of American families support and enjoy traditional circuses with performing animals, including many who attend shows in Milford.  It is wrong to deprive them of the right to choose to do so.
• If any animal is being mistreated in any environment, then the right answer is to enforce existing laws and regulations to punish bad actors, as opposed to punishing an entire industry and the public who enjoy circuses.
  
•  A positive, healthy environment is the only acceptable and successful method of training performing animals.  Therefore, the cornerstone of all circus animal training is positive reinforcement through praise, repetition and reward.
• Circuses contribute to the local economies of the communities they perform in and help support municipal areas.